This is about our children that survived. Several didn't. Jane was in a terrible accident in France and we lost a child soon after it was prematurely born. She also had several miscarriages.
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John graduated from the University of Miami with a BFA and did graduate work at UNC. He is in theater design and so is his mate. John has worked in movies, in ballet, lots of professional theater productions and for conventions, mostly as a theater technician but often as supervisor of projects. His specialty is lighting and I hear he is very good at what he does. |
John was sensitive an easily hurt. I could have been a lot more understanding but I wasn't and there is nothing I can do about that now. John had many personal disappointments and several failed relationships. Now he seems happier than he has ever been which I am certain is a consequence of his bonding with a women who cares about him and surprisingly she also likes us. She has also influenced his attitude toward us in a positive way and we now see much more of him than we did in the previous 20 years. I have to be honest though and there are times when I just don't like him very much. He is not an easy person for me to like but I am certain he feels that same way toward me also and we both love each other.
There was a time when we didn't see John at all. That has changed and I enjoy the new relationship with him. I may even learn to like him more.
My daughter is the loud mouth but in a good sort of way. She talks a lot, but I have been accused of that also just as my mother was also very loud. I think that thread runs from my mother to me, to Deborah. And she sticks up for those who can't. She insists on fairness. She is a liberal. Richard is also a liberal. I'm not sure about John. Deb is vivacious and I'm proud of her. She lives next to us on the compound (which is how I refer to our adjoining property) here, which is what I call this 10 acres plus we have in Central Florida - our own little piece of tranquility and heaven (in an earthly sense).
She worked in the Title I program in the local school district here for over five years and was named "Employee of the Year" in 2006 - and she has also learned sign language - which has been useful to her in her work. She is now the Director in charge of all blood collections for the blood bank in this county, which supplies all the county hospitals (and other needs).
My son Richard, is disabled (he has cerebral palsy) and has now reached an age where he is having some more pronounced physical problems which are difficult for Jane since the available medical care for anyone on medicaid/medicare is so limited now, thanks to the Republicans who rather save an embryo than provide any help for disabled folks - and most doctors will not treat him because they don't have to and there is no funding. They say they don't get paid enough from medicaid and some don't get enough from medicare. So what is someone disabled to do? The richest country in the world and medical care is still limited to those with money to pay for it. What a disgrace we Americans are when we can't even provide for the weakest and most infirm among us but we can kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people by denying them adequate care or dropping bombs on them.
Richard is my best friend.
We moved to Orlando in the 80s and I worked as a typesetter for a small newspaper and as a proof reader. Then I moved up to cub reporter for them and another small newspaper. Then I made a very costly investment. We bought a home and a 10-acre orange grove in Montverde, FL, which is in Lake County, just West of Orlando. But bad weather, two freezes which came back-to-back, in two years, froze our oranges, and we were put out of business and we sold the property at a loss.
In the 90s we moved to Ocala and now we live at the 10-acre (plus) Roth Compound where we grow whatever will grow and we enjoy the earth and each other.