TWISTER
He realized that human connection was what most fascinated him. -Stephen Cope, SOUL FRIENDS This is a special week. Mom and I will be attending the wedding of my first cousin, Carol Lucero. Carol is my mom’s niece (mom’s brother, Howard, is her father).
Meanwhile, before departing Los Angeles Alan and I received a cool postcard from MONACO. I loved the MONACO postage stamps. The postcard was from Alan’s cousin, Elliott and his wife Annemarie Rosenzweig:
‘Dear Alan and Michael,
Hell o’va Birthday Party! VERY exciting...packed with people, Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Bentleys, etc.
Thinking of you with love,
Annemarie & Elliott
I flew to Alameda and I drove mom’s car to Yosemite National Park. Carol’s wedding was to take place at precisely 11:30AM on May 18th at the Yosemite Valley Chapel. The chapel was built in 1879 and still holds religious services and is the site of any weddings in Yosemite. I’m not sure how Carol and Ryan found it but it’s beautifully nestled in nature.
Mom and I were staying at the only Relais and Chateau in the area known as CHATEAU DU SUREAU. Upon checking-in we were escorted by a bellman who was all dressed up and they provided us with a glass of wine. The hotel room was like an English cottage. There was a garden nearby. The Chateau even had a library for the guests to share for reading or even playing a piano. Yes, there was a piano in the library. I had mom sit in front of the piano and play a few keys. I did the same. I wish I knew how to play the piano. I also wish I learned how to be a ballet dancer—but we can’t always have it all. Ha-ha.
When mom and I entered the Yosemite National Park to attend the wedding the rapid rivers alongside of us were so beautiful. I remember pulling over to take a quick photo of my mom with the river background.
The CHATEAU provided us with photo cards and I wrote my mom a letter. Mom did the same for me. We wrote the cards upon our return to the CHATEAU, after the ceremony/reception. It was a beautiful wedding. Carol looked beautiful, and so very happy.
May 18, 1996 Dear Mom,
What can I say? We sure had fun driving here even if we saw a few dead things on the road along the way. You’ll have to admit—staying at this Chateau is an experience. I’m so glad we did it together. As I’ve said many times in the past—you are more than a mom—you're a very, special friend.
At least The Wedding is over. I’m with you—weddings can be a ‘drag’--but the drive getting to that Yosemite Chapel was an adventure. I know those winding roads bothered you but we got through them okay.
I loved how the staff at the CHATEAU ironed your dress, brought us an umbrella during that light rainfall. They just plain “pampered us”. That’s how we should be treated. As long as we’re having fun. We caught up on our reading, too.
Soon we’ll be going out to see the movie, TWISTER. The tornado movie! Yikes! That will make an earthquake seem tame.
The dinner at the ELDERBERRY HOUSE last night was filling and yet...it was fun getting each new course—no knowing what to expect. You sure know how to make me laugh sometimes. You’re a sweetheart.
Thanks for the NORMAN ROCKWELL figurines that you bought me. And, the copper think chain bracelet that I liked. I’ll treasure them as I do all things you find for me.
Maybe you can go to ROSS STORES and find a 5 x 7 frame to frame this card as a memento. I’d say it is suitable for framing, so you’ll remember our walks through the CHATEAU gardens.
Next time we’ll rent bikes. Ha-Ha
See you in Washington DC next month (June/July 1996). Hoorah!
Love Always,
Your Son, Michael
Dear Son,
I had a good time here but you know we always have a good time wherever we go together.
You know how to pick nice places to stay.
I hope we’ll have a nice time in Washington DC, too. But I don’t know how the girls (Ashley and Lauren) will act. I hope they’re good!
Well, I ran out of words.
Love,
Mom
P.S. I hope you like your Norman Rockwell figurines. I hope to enjoy the TWISTER movie, too.
The wedding really was quite special. There wasn’t a lot of family that attended but given that it’s not so easy a destination I guess that’s understandable. The Lucero Family group photo was nice: Pictured Left to Right: Uncle John Raymond Lucero and 2nd wife, Liz, my mom Virginia M Armijo, my grandmother May Genevieve Leyba-Lucero, ‘me’, Howard’s 2nd wife, Tina Botelho, the groom Ryan Ferris, the bride Carol Lucero, Carol’s dad Howard, Uncle Arthur and his 3rd wife, Pam.
Mom and I did go to see the movie TWISTER. It was wild and so real. There was this bit of dialogue that definitely made me think of my dad. My mom probably picked it up, too. Here’s the dialogue from the movie:
: Jo. Things go wrong. You can't explain it, you can't predict it. Killing yourself won't bring your dad back. I'm sorry that he died, but that was a long time ago. You gotta move on. Stop living in the past, and look what you got right in front of you. : What are you talking about?
: Me, Jo.
My return to Los Angeles was easy but I told Alan that we have to go to that CHATEAU near Yosemite one day. It was quite unique and ever-so-beautiful.
The 20th arrived and Alan had a sweet note waiting for me (our anniversary monthly date as we met on November 20th, 1989):
I love michael
Happy 6.5-year Anniversary. From 1010 Palm Ave to Sea Colony to Via Dolce to Alta Mura to Via Dolce to NY to Paris to Miami to St. Kitts to Las Vegas to Tossa de Mar to Lake Tahoe to Milan to Newport Beach to Geneva to San Diego to London to Hong Kong to China. I’m still HOH (Head Over Heels) over you.
Your lover, Alan
LOVE, ALAN
(I’m blushing---well, just a little bit).
“We make our own path in life.” --as heard in the 2013 Hong Kong film, THE GRANDMASTER
