Make It Happen

He that has eyes to see and ears to hear may convince himself that no mortal can keep a secret. If his lips are silent, he chatters with his fingertips; betrayal oozes out of him at every pore. --Sigmund Freud (as read in the book by Alex Michaelides, THE SILENT PATIENT) 

Leave it to PALOMA to send a Happy New Year card.  I loved the Eiffel Tower ‘BONNE ANNEE’ card she sent: 

Dear Michael, 

I wish you, Alan and your family a very Happy New Year.  

Sorry I missed Christmas. Hope all is well. 

Love, 

Paloma 

Gloria had a continuation NEW YEAR get-together at her place, and I took more pics while there. Alan’s cousin, Ilene, was still around with her family (husband Donald and grown-up kids Jared, Jonas and Lindsay). Dorothy Rua was set to leave later in the evening, so it was nice to see her again along with Alan’s accountant, Cathy Imai.  

Mom’s first cousins who all live in Santa Fe, NM sent a sweet belated Holiday card: 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. God Bless you all. 

Love From, Chanita and Paul Leyba 

Regards from the LEYBA Family. My telephone number is 1-505-983-4420. You should send me some pictures of your family. I can remember Virginia. It’s been a long time, so regards from all of us.  

And Edward Espinosa in Albuquerque followed-up like he said he would with his family information. He did a great job, too. Edward’s maternal grandfather, DARIO LUCERO, and my maternal grandfather, FIDEL ALEXANDER LUCERO, were brothers. Edward sent a cute snapshot of his sister, Margaret Gonzales on Santa’s lap with her husband, John Joseph Gonzales seated nearby. He wrote on his business stationary, CASA DE FLORES. I know there must be more stories intertwined in this family. Every family has secrets, so I hope to learn more as time goes by.  

January 3, 1997

Dear Michael,

Here is a snapshot I took Christmas Eve just passed. I used one of those throwaway cameras, so the quality is poor, but I think you’ll get the idea. I’m having some older family pictures reproduced, so I’ll send them along when I get them back.  

I’ll have some information about my grandad’s grandfather and great grandfather in the next couple of weeks. This whole thing is a lot of fun. I’m glad you got it started... 

Edward 

On January 5th, we spent a good part of the day with my first cousin, Carol Lucero, who was in town with her husband, Ryan Ferris. That was fun. They look so happy. They’re ready for 1997 and I am too. I am geared-up for more happy times. My mission is to make it happen.  

“Pleasure stems from variety, my friends,” he repeated with an excited gleam in his eye. --Mario Vargas Llosa in his book, AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER