August 9, 2021 TWO OUT OF THREE AIN'T BAD

 

Actually---it was four out of five. Not Bad. Got together with most of my siblings last week. Haven't seen a few of them in at least 10 years--HELL--haven't  lived with them since I was fourteen. My youngest brother doesn't even remember living with me. Crazy. Nothing like a health scare to get family together.  It was really great visiting with my siblings AND IT WAS LONG OVERDUE. We come from different states AND are as different as night and day BUT there is a bond we share that can't be denied. We laughed talking about the old days--cried because it had been too long--vowed to get together in the next two years. One of the highlights of the trip was running with my youngest brother.  I never in a million years thought we'd ever get to run together. We've texted  about the possibility many times  but the reality was amazing. Running in a new city is an incredible experience made even better because it was with him. I absolutely love the sights and sounds of a new city and running enabled us to explore the nooks and crannies often missed in the car.  We were even able to  run between Cincinnati and Kentucky several times thanks to some really cool bridges. If you have siblings that you haven't seen  in a LONG while--make the effort to get together--it's really worth it. Another thing worth your effort is the final book in The Art of Hearing Heartbeats trilogy by Jan-Philipp Sendker called The Heart Remembers. The last installment of this lovely series is set in Kalaw, a small town in Burma. Ko Bo is a twelve year old boy who lives with his Uncle U Ba. Ko Bo hasn't seen his mother, Julia Win, in seven years as she has a mysterious illness. He only sees his father, Thar Thar, once a year for a week because his mother can not be left alone. Ko Bo yearns to learn more about this parents and begs his uncle to tell him why his mother stays away but U Ba is reluctant to tell him. After finding and reading letters about his parents' love story, Ko Bo is convinced that he can heal his mother and reunite his family so he runs away to Yangon to try to find his parents This beautiful, tragic story is a must read for anyone who has read the first two books. The writing is incredible and the characters are unforgettable. This book is about 400 pages or a 4.5 mile run that you'll always remember.  If you haven't read the trilogy--I recommend starting with the first book and reading them in order. Enjoy.