20年ほど前、職場が横浜の天王町に移った際、私が生まれた釜台が近くだと思い出し、母と訪ねてみた。
間借りしていた大家さんの家は建て直され、遊び場だったゴルフ場は、横浜国立大学のキャンパスになっていた。
Ron-sanが住んでいたGrass Valleyはゴールドラッシュ時代の賑わいの面影を残すシックな町。
そして周囲は幼少期のRon-sanが遊び回ったシエラネバダ山脈の懐に広がる森。美しい町だ。
さて、両親の離婚後、Ron-sanは、母親、姉とともに、そのGrass Vallyからカリフォルニア州の州都サクラメントに移った。
There were the Osegueda’s. They were a very tight Mexican family with five children. I was always closest to the oldest son, Art, simply because he was about my age. Art’s father was “Big Sal”, and he was big. I can still picture him out there in his front lawn mowing, washing or repairing the car, or barbecuing for the whole family. Having that family around me was very helpful in my growing up.
There were the Irish’s. They were the sharpest family on the block with a strong matriarch in Marcel (the mother). Chuck, the father, was an executive for the local newspaper in Sacramento, and all the children, four in all, were destined to go far. Here again, Chuck was another father figure in my life.
There were the Sollom’s, a family with nothing but girls, until the last one was a boy after I entered school. I had nothing to do with him because of the age gap. That family too had a great impact on me. It gave me the grounding as to what an extended, complete family looks like and what was possible.
These families and the fathers in the family were very much a part of my early parenting figures. This is particularly true of the fathers, who were willing to play catch with or invite me over for a barbecue. In those days, air conditioning was not so common, and we would often barbecue outside to get out of the overheated house in the evening.
I was a sport type in those days and nothing much else. My mother was a book reader and a wiz with the English language. My sister was more of an artist and creative thinker. So, there we were, three very different people in the same house.
My life was Little League Baseball, mud football and nothing much else. I did command quite good respect from my teammates and coaches. Even today, I still have strong pictures in my mind of many of those coaches, their leadership and guidance.
間借りしていた大家さんの家は建て直され、遊び場だったゴルフ場は、横浜国立大学のキャンパスになっていた。
Ron-sanが住んでいたGrass Valleyはゴールドラッシュ時代の賑わいの面影を残すシックな町。
そして周囲は幼少期のRon-sanが遊び回ったシエラネバダ山脈の懐に広がる森。美しい町だ。
さて、両親の離婚後、Ron-sanは、母親、姉とともに、そのGrass Vallyからカリフォルニア州の州都サクラメントに移った。
There were the Osegueda’s. They were a very tight Mexican family with five children. I was always closest to the oldest son, Art, simply because he was about my age. Art’s father was “Big Sal”, and he was big. I can still picture him out there in his front lawn mowing, washing or repairing the car, or barbecuing for the whole family. Having that family around me was very helpful in my growing up.
There were the Irish’s. They were the sharpest family on the block with a strong matriarch in Marcel (the mother). Chuck, the father, was an executive for the local newspaper in Sacramento, and all the children, four in all, were destined to go far. Here again, Chuck was another father figure in my life.
There were the Sollom’s, a family with nothing but girls, until the last one was a boy after I entered school. I had nothing to do with him because of the age gap. That family too had a great impact on me. It gave me the grounding as to what an extended, complete family looks like and what was possible.
These families and the fathers in the family were very much a part of my early parenting figures. This is particularly true of the fathers, who were willing to play catch with or invite me over for a barbecue. In those days, air conditioning was not so common, and we would often barbecue outside to get out of the overheated house in the evening.
I was a sport type in those days and nothing much else. My mother was a book reader and a wiz with the English language. My sister was more of an artist and creative thinker. So, there we were, three very different people in the same house.
My life was Little League Baseball, mud football and nothing much else. I did command quite good respect from my teammates and coaches. Even today, I still have strong pictures in my mind of many of those coaches, their leadership and guidance.
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