In his book “Sirens of Titan”, Kurt Vonnegut tells of a race of alien people who can see in the fourth dimension, that being Time.  Therefore, when they see a person, they do not see just them in the present, but as every being that they have ever been.  So what they see resembles a snake, at one end a crawling baby and at the other end an old person walking with a cane.

Perhaps this is what I’m doing digging up old family photographs and putting them into safekeeping.  I am reminding myself of who we and our kids looked and were in the past, and somehow integrating those reminiscences with our present selves.  I would imagine that, when they look in the mirror, our kids see themselves as they are in the present, with little thought of the past and the future.  (I sent them a link to some of the photos I’ve saved, but the response did not seem to be thunderous.)  But when we see them, we see the serpentine creatures that the sirens of Titan see, every version of our children from the beginning to the present.

************************

A few little remembrances of my parents:

My dad used to say “Guys, GARGLE!”  Every morning the sound of my dad gargling would emanate from our shared bathroom.  On the whole we did not take the minute to follow his lead, and remarkably my dad never seemed to catch a cold!  With a family of six children, one might expect him to catch viruses from us.  My mom, on the other hand, had regularly two or three colds per year, each of which laid her out for up to a week.  This we attributed to the hyper-dynamic life style that she usually led, staying up very late at night and operating during the day at a frenetic pace.

The second thing that my dad did to promote his health was daily stretching exercises and calisthenics to start each morning.  He would go out to our little square second floor hallway, and the sound “oop! oop! oop!” could be heard as, in his skivvies, he did side-to-side stretches, sit-ups, and other such exercises.  As he grew older he developed a portly shape which made this exercise seem even cuter as time went on.

Kids see a shorter segment of their parents’ serpentine selves than their parents see of their kids.  Which may explain the fascination that kids have with childhood photos of their parents.

******************

Jeremy seems to be establishing himself at the end of the season as the Lakers’ legitimate point guard.  Byron Scott has announced that he is starting Jeremy for the last ten games of the season at the point.  In the meantime, he is experimenting with lineup combinations (filled in by assistant Paul Pressey as he mourns the death of his mother).   The Laker announcers are now firmly in Jeremy’s corner.  The other day he scored 29 points and had 5 assists in a stellar game against Philadelphia.  The word “Linsanity” did not come up, perhaps for the better as pointed out by Carol.  This was a more mature performance, informed by the lessons of the last few years, against opponents who are very aware of his capabilities.  Fewer turnovers, more restraint, but still the many flashes of brilliance which make him so much fun to watch.  (I personally love the long bounce pass assists.) Good for you, Jeremy!

As always, thanks for reading, friends.