Family Time

We had planned this trip back in February when plans for my family’s reunion were finalized. The location would be at a restaurant in San Jose, so we made reservations for a suite in Burlingame so our family could be together and close enough to drive to make the most of the trip.

When our second son Jarand passed away unexpectedly, I briefly thought abut cancelling the trip but realized that it might be a way to heal. I’m glad I didn’t cancel; Jarand is with us on this trip. This was the first trip he would be taking to California since moving to Las Vegas three years ago. He was looking forward to it.

Randy was so excited to visit his Law School in San Francisco. He hadn’t been back to walk the grounds since he graduated back in 1974. It has changed a lot since then, and as he went through the rooms, he reminisced about the classes he took. We ate at Mel’s Diner where he ate sometimes when he was in Law School and showed us the apartment he lived in during his last year at USF. It overlooks Mel’s Diner. During his three years in Law School, Randy learned how to analyze and synthesize information, skills that have proven useful to him in his many different career choices such as Deputy Attorney General, City Councilmember, Director of Aloha Tower Development, State Senator, Chair of the Labor Appeals Board, and now Chair of the Public Utilities Commission.

This was not my first time in San Francisco, but this time, as we drove around the city, I was particularly drawn to the layout of the city and the architecture of the homes and buildings which was  clearly designed for the city. The tall, narrow Victorian-style homes stacked next to each other appealed to me, but at the same time, I felt somewhat claustrophobic with so little space between the homes. Our son Justin is a realtor and he follows trends around the country. The whole area is the second-most expensive in the country, next to San Jose which is part of Silicon Valley. Honolulu is number four.

On Friday, we visited Randy’s 86-year-old aunt whom we rarely see since she moved back to the mainland about 30 years ago to be closer to her children. It was a long drive by Hawaii standards, but it included crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. What an engineering wonder! We could see the bridge from the distance, and it was even more impressive in person than it is in pictures! (After returning from our day trip, I googled to find out more about the Golden Gate Bridge. I was especially interested in how the workers were protected during the construction. Amazing!) It was wonderful to see Aunty Kike; she has some health issues but is still alert and communicative. I’m sure it was nostalgic for Randy’s family to reminisce about past events, and our grandsons had a wonderful time exploring and discovering in the back yard. Time seems to melt away when we’re with family; the stories that were shared were often acccompanied by hearty laughter.

Saturday was a busy day. Our family reunion was in the evening so we stopped along the way at Levi’s Stadium where the San Francisco 49ers recently relocated to. Since the 49ers was Jarand’s favorite team, we had to visit for him. He would have loved learning more about the history of the team and their philosophy. I could just imagine his excitement as we walked through the museum. SF has always been my favorite team as well, but this year, our whole family will be cheering for the 49ers to have a great season.

One of the great things about Google is finding new places to visit. That’s how we found the Tech Museum of Innovation (https://www.thetech.org/) in San Jose. We could have spent all day there; it was a such a fun, hands-on place filled with new learning. I experienced being a bird flying over the city through a short virtual reality activity; truthfully, I wasn’t thrilled about it, but it was definitely something new to try. We tried to experience as much as we could in the hours we had available to us; that’s really not conducive to deeper learning. However, that is what we did since we don’t know if we’ll ever have another opportunity to visit there. I think that’s true when we travel to a new place. In our desire to experience as much as possible, we rush from place-to-place and miss out on the deeper learning. Is that how learning is in school as well?

The Amemiya family reunion was fun; it was great to see relatives we hadn’t seen in years and to talk story. The family is scattered around the country, and many were unable to make the trip due to a variety of reasons. My grandfather is a first generation immigrant, and my grandma is second generation; she was born in Hawaii. Seven children, 21 grandchildren, and many fourth and fifth generations later, our family has grown considerably. Through the power of social media, we keep in touch with what is happening in our lives. I can’t imagine not being connected through Facebook and Instagram!

This was a very busy, short trip to California, packed with activities. Next, we’ll “relax” in Las Vegas and spend time with Justin, Jace, and Jayden before returning to Hawaii. My retirement won’t be official until the end of the month, but I can tell that I’ll adjust. There’s so much to explore and discover and learn!

PS - This was my first time adding to my blog from my iPad. It’s an adjustment, and I don’t know how to add pictures. One more thing to learn iduring my upcoming retirement!