Seattle Sojourn
Sharon and I flew up to Seattle this past weekend to say good-bye to our daughter Amy, son-in-law Steve, and their dog Filbert.
They were about to leave the United States and jet to Copenhagen to live. Steve’s sister Kathy and brother-in-law Neil threw a going-away party for them on Mercer Island in Lake Washington in Seattle. Naturally, we had to attend.
I’ll have more on what took place at that party on Saturday after I tell you what happened before it.
Sharon and I landed in Seattle on Friday afternoon — and after a quick stop at our hotel, we took an Uber to the city’s handsome waterfront.
A few years ago, Seattle made the wise decision to tear down the ugly elevated freeway that ran where the waterfront is now and which obstructed the view of the water from nearby condominiums and business buildings.
The city built a handsome park promenade in its place, with sculpture gardens, children’s playgrounds, restaurants and plenty of walking and bicycling space.
That’s where we met longtime Fresno friends Pat and Liz Dodds (right) on what was a gorgeous sunny Seattle day.
They had moved to Seattle about a decade ago to help care for their grandchildren. They bought a condo near the University of Washington and now spend much of their time with those grandchildren. They use Seattle’s excellent public transit system to get around. They have adjusted to life in Seattle quite well.
We enjoyed a fine dinner with them at the Pub 70 restaurant, which is at Pier 70 on the waterfront. Somehow, Pat and I mistakenly paid for each other’s dinners. We attribute this to the fact we were not wearing our reading glasses.
After dinner, we walked down the waterfront for a piece, ending up at an ice cream parlor before Sharon and I caught an Uber back to our hotel.
Saturday morning — having a few hours before we needed to be at the good-bye party — Sharon and I decided to spend time at a nearby mall. But not just any mall.
Southcenter is the biggest shopping mall in the Pacific Northwest. It has more than 1.6 million square feet of retail space and boasts a mere 218 stores over three stories. It features three major anchors — Macy’s, Nordstrom and JCPenney — along with dozens and dozens of big-name stores everyone would know and many stores we’d never heard of.
Among them — the Koneko Kafe. Relaxation Station. Top to Bottom. Smart Fix. Cascabel. JDSports.Com. Windsor Champs Sports. Perfume Obsession. Urbanity. Kings Den (this one is an upscale barber shop that was populated, on this Saturday morning, by spiffy young men who looked ready to spend lots of money to get their locks styled).
There was even a store named Squishable (right) — filled, yes, with soft, plush toys for children. There was also a Lego store, an AT&T store, along with many restaurants of different types and styles.
Oh, and did I mention the big AMC movie theater?
We could not, of course, walk the entire length and breadth of this massive mall — even after taking a rest stop to enjoy drinks from Starbucks (which we had to have, of course, because Starbucks was born in Seattle).
We could have spent an entire day at the mall, but we had other places to go and people to see. So we had lunch at BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse at the mall — choosing that one because we have the same restaurant in Fresno and like it.
We topped it off with a stop at the Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlor.
Then it was time for the real reason for our Seattle sojourn — the good-bye party for Amy and Steve and Fil.
It took place at Kathy and Neil’s lovely home on Mercer Island in Lake Washington. They went all-out to create a simply delightful sendoff. Our day was full of appetizers and good food and fine wine and good cheer.
We spent the afternoon on the patio overlooking the lake. And we happened to be there on the same weekend that Seattle’s signature summer festival, Seafair, was taking place. What a festival it is.
Seafair’s festival runs for several weeks, but the highlights came this past Saturday, with hydroplane races and the annual Blue Angels air show.
Ah, yes, the Blue Angels. Sharon and I had seen this incredible daredevil flying feat in San Francisco, but we were not as close as we were this time. Oh, my, no.
Amy and Steve had been in Seattle — at Kathy and Neil’s place — during the Angels’ show before. Amy warned us that the planes would be zooming right over us.
But we were not prepared for the opening “act” — which took place when one of the fighter jets flew right over the top of our patio. I mean, right over the top — with an absolutely thundering sound that scared the living heck out of me and which rattled the patio and house.
What a start! Of course, we did not get a picture of that. But Sharon got some excellent shots of the Angels flying in all kinds of daring formations, often seeming to avoid crashing into each other by mere inches.
It was quite a show, indeed. Even Fil the Dog was awed.
Kathy and Neil had, as I say, gone out of their way to make this send-off something we’d never forget. Not only did they cook up a complete storm, but they had dozens and dozens of small Danish flags that they placed both on the food and around the patio.
It was an incredibly upbeat afternoon, in spite of what we all knew was going to be a somber good-bye.
Steve and Amy — and their beloved Filbert — moving to Copenhagen. For how long? No one knows.
But they had decided to leave the United States and take up residence in a city and country that have many things they covet.
Copenhagen is one of the world’s great cities. It has outstanding healthcare, free for those who live there (of course, Denmark’s residents pay taxes for it — but they are quite willing to do so).
Copenhagen has great universities, incredible cultural institutions and a highly literate population.
It also is ranked as the happiest city in the world. Yes, residents love Copenhagen.
So it’s easy to understand why Amy and Steve want to experience this — to its fullest.
Sharon and I had also “hit the road” decades ago. We traveled around the nation, lived in a variety of great cities, had great jobs, and got to see the United States in a way we never could have imagined.
We also traveled around Europe with Amy and Bradley on vacations.
We like to think all that traveling imbued Amy and Bradley with wanderlust. Amy spent two years in the Peace Corps in Africa, while Brad lived overseas for years, attending St. Andrews College in Scotland and Cambridge University in England.
Brad and Nicole now live in New Orleans.
So we’re used to having our children gone. But this feels different.
Copenhagen is more than 5,500 miles from Fresno. Yes, airlines can get us there. But I’m feeling the effects of my older age and am not sure how I could handle such a trip.
The truth is, we all try to raise our children to have better lives than we did. We raise our children to make their own decisions about where to live and how to make their livings. We raise them to leave home.
And Amy and Steve decided — Copenhagen it is. And all of us who know them wish them the best life possible — that their dreams come true.
And so it was that — after we had taken a group picture of all of us at the party — and as shadows started creeping into the evening — I started feeling really, really emotional about what was about to happen. We’d had months to prepare for this — but when you are about to say good-bye to your child — well, I think you get the picture.
As Sharon and I were leaving, we hugged Amy and Steve, of course. Held them close. Told them, as we had all afternoon, that we loved them.
As we walked down the driveway toward our waiting Uber, Amy and Steve were standing at the top of the driveway, watching us.
And the only thing I could say to them as I turned back and waved — the only words I could choke out through my tears: “Have a great life.”
I could barely speak on the way back to our hotel.
Then — 18 hours later — came a truly emotional photo. The last picture of Amy and Steve and Fil in the United States — at the Seattle airport (left) — as they got ready to board the jet that would carry them to their new lives.
They sent that photo just as we arrived at the Fresno airport.
And all I could write to them at that moment — the only thing I could think of to say: “We love you three. Godspeed.”