18 Years
She was the ultimate ham, the “look at me” girl, dancing, singing, telling stories, a broadway show all in herself. Her short heavy black hair, chubby little cheeks, squeaky little voice, she was the light of every room she entered, the center of attention, and not unwanted. Cute beyond any measure of cuteness, 18 by the time she was four, making friends everywhere she went.
Daddy and Alli
Nobody told her to put her hands like that, we never had to.
One of her first best friends.
He wasn’t shy, but not outgoing. He loved to laugh and laughed hard. He would run in and out of a room, his short black hair, chubby dark cheeks and squinty eyes, never desiring to be the center of attention, but happy to be playing something, basketball, baseball, football. Unlike her he didn’t make friends instantaneously, it usually took some time. But his friends were always his friends. He was always happy, always hungry and very easy-going. They were a perfect complement to each other, Best friends, buddies and siblings.
Our earliest pictures of Dorian. He was a chunk.
Momma's boy
He loved snuggling with mommy
They were twins, if not by blood, by family. They journeyed through every phase of life together, walking, home school, Sunday school, T-ball, getting new brother’s and sisters, becoming annoyed with new brother and sisters and even High School. Although as they got older their interests may not have stayed the same, her the social butterfly making a new friend every day, dancing, drama ( a suitable fit) and any other activity she could get him to drive her to. Him, football, baseball, and eventually settling on basketball. He became a very hard studier, pushing himself far beyond average, very organized and self motivated. He made a few friends, but they were his friends, and that is all he needed. His quiet demeanor making him mysterious and popular although not to his liking. She at every dance, he at none. He studying hard for every test, her waiting for the last-minute choosing to read books instead. The results were very similar, the grades very similar, they are very different, but very similar.
she always loved the camera, and it loved her.
Dorian and Uncle Gerad
Grandpa reading to Dorian in Kodiak. They both loved bird watching.
Beautiful from a very young age.
Two finally adjusted kids, the oldest of this family of 8, the leaders, the ones who had to suffer through our blunders as parents, our impatience, often taken for granted as new babies came. They became our rocks. The ones we counted on to come through for us, that we leaned on, that we trusted to be Godly, wholesome people, the ones to help us with the rest of the family. And now together they turn 18. Likely this is the last year they will live with us, and they will be missed. The Bible says in God’s eyes a day is like a thousand years and life is but a twinkle of an eye. Looking back in my mind’s eye, I think I know what that means now. Because as much as I love them now, as proud as I am of what they have become and as excited as I am for where they are going, they will always live in my heart as the two-three year old gifts from God who brightened even minute of my life and the lives of those that had the pleasure to meet them.
Dorian with his first of many King Salmon.
Again, just her natural pose after a piano recital
Post dance
Best buddies forever.
Dorian and his oldest cousin Josh
Alli, Kassie, Livy after yet another dance recital.
My girls
My boys
I pray Alli and Dorian that you find joy in this life through your relationship with God and others, and that you follow the path that he leads you on. Your mom and I will always pray for you, always be here for you and are always forever thankful for all you have brought into our lives. You could never be replaced and you could not be loved more. Thank you for being awesome role models for all your younger siblings. You are awesome adults, but you will always be our oldest LITTLE boy and girl. We are confident that no matter where you go or what you do you will excel. Thank you so much for all you have brought into my life and all you will continue to bring. And if you ever decide to go into business together, Alli you be the “talent” Dorian you be the manager and I promise you will be unstoppable. .
My all time favorite Alli / Dorian picture. This is how daddy will always remember you.
Fishing for a birthday present
Shopping for brithdays can be a little tricky here in Costa Rica, especially out in the boonies where we live. But one thing that Dorian wanted for his eighteenth that we could provide was to go fishing. So we arranged a 1/2 days charter out of Potrero to see what he could catch. Of course I didn’t want him to fall overboard or anything, so I decided that I should probably tag along, just in case.
Now if you have ever read this blog you know Dorian likes to fish. Quite often he seems to catch the most and the biggest fish on our trips. He also puts in the most time fishing. He likes to kill fish. Just type in fishing or Dorian in the search box to the right and you will see.
Our guide promising us some big fish.
We have not done a lot of charter fishing in our time. So this charter trip was going to be a pretty new affair. It started great. A small skiff backed into the surf to pick us up from the beach. The water was warm and as we waded knee deep out to the skiff, I could see there was some cloud cover, but no rain in sight. Our vessel was a 30 foot fiberglass inboard with a soft top and cabin for sun and rain protection if needed. There was a single well used white leather fishing chair on the back deck. As soon as we let loose from the anchor the two deckhands got to work. Within 5 minutes they had 5 lines in the water and we were trolling. Within another 15 minutes Dorian had landed two Spanish Mackerel. All this before we even left Potrero Bay.
Elephant Rock, no fish no elephants.
Now being from Alaska my idea of fishing is a little different than what we were doing here. You see when I fish I like to get my hands dirty, put on the bait, tie on lures, set the lines and most of all set the hook. Here our two tico guides did all the work for us while we watched intently. You could tell they had time on the water. Their skin was dark and dry, from the sun and salty water. They hand sunglass rings around their eyes, and the youngest ones white logo t-shirt was as thin as a toilet paper, with small fish stains all around it. They worked in unison, each knowing what the other was doing, while the slipper skipper up on the flying bridge drove the boat. The deckhands were thin and whispy, their clothes dirty, they were happy talkative and fun. The skipper, he was nice, but he was a big man, his clothes much cleanier and we didn’t get to talk to him much.
The wind was a steady 10 knots out of the east, but it was a welcome wind making the temperature just about perfect for shorts and t-shirts. There were clouds, but sparsely strewn amongst the blue sky, and this aftternoon the water was the perfect place to be.
Dorian in action.
After his initial catch the fishing slowed a bit as we headed out to deeper waters. We fished hard between some local islands, Elephant Rock, the Catalinas and the Mexican Sombrero. We managed to catch a couple of bonito and saw some neat birds, but that was about it. After several hours we trolled our way back into Potrero Bay. As we reached the mouth of the bay, Dorian landed another Spanish Mackerel. Then all of the sudden two rods went down at once and we both landed a nice silvery Pacific Mackerel, about 6 pounds a piece. Then the bite was on. For the next hour there was a fish on the line every 3 or 4 minutes. We were pulling them in as fast as we could. It was hard to take my eyes of the golden sunset, but I knew fish needed to be landed, so I did. The gear was too big for the fish we were catching, but every once in a while one of them would put a little extra fight to up the excitement. It was fast, furious and fun.
Two men.
By the end of the day we had landed at least a dozen mackerel, let several fish go, ate an expertly butchered fresh pineapple and watched an amazing sunset. It wasn’t fancy but it was effective and it was a fun way for a dad to spend the day with his 18 year old son. The next night we ate like kings with mackerel 3 ways. We even shared some with our guards, life long Ticos who said they were as good as any fish they have ever had in Costa Rica. High praise. Perhaps next year when he is going to college in Florida, he will take me out deep sea fishing for my birthday for the big ones, as long as I pay the way I’m sure it is a date.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Life goes on and on and on…
That’s what we have to realize at this time. Tracy and I always talk about having a magical device that you could just push a button and you could be somewhere else or fast forward time to bypass hard times. I would use it every time I am coming home late from fishing, her to get us through bad times quickly. But without the bad times, there would be no good times; you can’t have one without the other. So life goes on, although very unpleasant as it may be.
However, in the wallowing sea of sadness we are currently living in, we had a super bright spot today, something I have been looking forward to years and years. My first time watching a high school game with one of my kids playing. Dorian had his first high school game today, and I was sooooo excited. I have coached all my kids in something, but it all started with Dorian and basketball. He immediately took an interest in basketball and he was good from early on. Although he is almost always the smallest kid on any team he is on, football, basketball, baseball, ballet, .. ok I made that last one up, usually has the most heart. I have watched him get pummeled by bigger kids in football, try to box out huge kids in basketball, try to hit balls thrown by mere giants in baseball, and go right back and get some more. The kid has heart and I couldn’t be more proud of him. He is not always the fastest or best, but he is almost always one of coaches favorite ( I am not counting me even though I have coached him in just about everything except that ballet thing) because he never ever complains and he does what he is told. He could have tears streaming down his eyes, he does what he is suppose to do and he does it to the best of his ability. You cannot ask for more than that, although as his coach I probably have. So today’s blog is in honor of my oldest child, my parent’s oldest grandchild ( out of 20 I think) and Tracy’s parent’s oldest grandchild, Dorian Grey Godfrey. I could not be prouder of him.
He was sooo nervous, as I remember being. He looked lost for the first few minutes.
Let's get this thing started!
It seems to me that kids are much bigger than when I was in school. I remember thinking I was hot stuff, and it turns out I was right, but I don’t remember kids looking so big; especially freshman.
Dude, we could so take these guys, just us three.
Textbook defense, (just like dad taught him).
Dorian didn’t play tons tonight, but when he did he played well. He had the best defensive stance I saw all night, and some great moves. Pretty sweet shoes help too.
You can see how close his head is to the rim here, hope the NBA scouts were watching.
If there is a camera around, Jo will find it. Her forced smile is quite unique.
Beautiful skies on the way home.
I just threw this one in here because it was eerily pretty and icy on the way home, plus maybe Aspen Hotels will give me some $$ for putting em in my blog.
Here is a short video of some of Dorian’s action tonght. You can watch it here or tune into ESPN Sportscenter tonight at 10pm. Oh yeah, they won by like a dozen points or so, after all that is what is most important, isn’t it?
