End-of-year letter 2024

 

Flores annual 2024 end-of-the-year review 

The year 2024 was marked by traveling and connecting with friends and family. It was all good – exciting, warm and affectionate. Visiting one’s country of origin has the effect of reviving part of one’s essential identity, one’s essential self. 

We spent three weeks in February (2024) in the Philippines. We visited with my sister whose health had taken a downturn. She is jointly cared for by her children. Her eldest child Sandra lives close by and checks on her every day. Understandably, she is always lonely, a consequence of restrictions that accompany aging (socially and physically), as well as compromises brought about by her present medical condition. She mostly misses herself, the self that took care of herself, her life and the lives of many others. Sadness creeps in at different times of one’s life. How could it not? 

I was the recipient of two birthday celebrations in the Philippines, one by family and another by friends. I was acknowledged and praised. It was welcome, however undeserved. It is encouraging and inspiring to see how people manage to find happiness for themselves. The rest of the time we spent at our beachfront home. We named it Flores retreat but everyone there continued to refer to it as Nora’s Island resort. It is not really a resort and does not function as one. 

The roads to the property were still almost impassable but served to preserve the sanctity of our home as a retreat and a reprieve for us; a second home for when we retired. Extended stays have been postponed, partly because Nora chose and will continue to choose to work for as long as she can - if she can. 

 -o-o-o-o- 

We went back to the Philippines again in April for a reunion of Nora’s siblings, 8 of the 13 who are alive and well. Nieces and nephews came from different parts of the world to attend this gathering. The women who were the executives and organizers of the event, decided to hold the reunion at Flores Retreat. It was an unqualified success. It was a riot. Everyone found their place. Everyone was well fed. There were more than enough swirls of laughter and celebration in a week of sustained engagement. 

After that week, Nora and I traveled to tourist sites in the Philippines with two of our dear friends, Mike and Vera. It included a visit to the Chocolate hills of Bohol and to the borderless prison where prisoners lived in a family-community setting while serving their time. Our experiences are too numerous to go into detail in this letter. It was a fun adventure that brought us closer to each other. 

The only setback was the heat. It was warmer than I remembered. Nora says it was a time of “global boil.” Something grows or lives in every square meter in the Philippines (I am invoking license here). We need rain, not a deluge that leads to flash floods. We need a constant breeze to combat the heat. In spite of it all, Filipinos sustain a cheerful happy outlook. They are resilient. They are resourceful. Being happy is not only “okay,” but is expected and necessary. 

 -o-o-o-o- 

What has also happened is our renewed interest in Philippine social and political life. We read up on the Philippines, watch Philippine news (Rappler on the Internet) and generally direct our focus on local events. It has been a long time. It has been an eye-opener, some kind of awakening that is still in its beginning stages. 

For me, I was brought back to my days at the university where discourse about everything and anything was the norm. Radical (non-status-quo) ideas were just part of the mix. It was where I felt most comfortable and why my professional life has been in academic institutions. I could afford to entertain unpopular ideas without fear of reprimand, loss of employment or incarceration. Some of those that came before us were not as lucky. They include writers, journalists, activists and artists. Some that will come after us will not be as lucky as well. 

In the olden days, governments established departments of propaganda to shore up support for the efforts of war. Today there is no need for this because war-time rhetoric and beliefs are normalized. Fear, hate, dominance and greed permeate along with lies and distractions from real issues. They have become entrenched and pose the possible eradication of the illusion that civilized societies can co-exist. 

It can be argued that the destructive sentiments mentioned above have always existed and always will. This is true. However, I submit that what is unique today is global extremism between and within nations, cultures, classes and countries. Many persons will unnecessarily die. 

The times not only call for a renewed radicalization but more important, the times call for elevating humanitarian outcomes above all else. The times call for a stop to the diminution of life and human relationships. The times call for a revitalization of economic, societal and political institutions geared towards achieving equal humanitarian outcomes for all. 

 -o-o-o-o-o-o-o- 

This year has been a year of transition for Nora. These are her words. 

This is Nora: I had a life-threatening event this year. Complications with a new chemotherapy led to severe respiratory failure. I was hospitalized for five days. I was oxygen-dependent for two months, which kept me pretty much bedfast. It took four months to be well enough to return to Kansas City. My recuperation has been slow and tedious, but I get better daily. 

Luis has been here for me the whole time. My children and grandchildren text and call regularly. And visit. I am thankful for my extended family and friends near and far for their prayers, which helps tremendously. My beloved colleagues and co-workers at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital have been my family away from home. We stay in contact. Of course, I have my oncology team at the Kansas University Cancer Center, who has cared for me for the past thirteen years and continues to consider my input on the quality of life I wish to have. They are wonderful. 

I completed my shamanic training in October and have been initiated into the Quero lineage of the high Andes through the Four Winds School of Energy Medicine. My classmates and teachers have been incredible in their support. I follow the messages of my inner shaman, work on my self-healing, and adapt to my disabilities. 

I pay attention to the messages from Spirit for the soul purpose the Divine has for me. It is possible to not only live with cancer (or any disability for that matter) but thrive with it for however long one lives. Shaman speak refers to this as being claimed by life, not death. Each day is a bonus gift. With unconditional love from family, friends, and acquaintances, how can I not be claimed by life? 

-o-o-o-o- 

Due to Nora’s physical difficulties and my advancing age, we have to downsize and move to a different abode. I stopped teaching two years ago. Nora stopped working. It is all well and good – the vicissitudes of a lifespan journey. 

Presently, we reside at our James A Reed home. It is a heavily wooded area with three levels of land and a small brook running alongside the property. It is like-country living in the city. We lost about five trees presumably due to climate change (ouch). Many birds, butterflies, a snapping turtle that used to live in the brook, a groundhog and other wild animals have virtually departed (ouch). I think the groundhog, among others are no longer residents because they failed to nurture their young on our land. The deer population has grown but the squirrel population has decreased. Even though we have resisted manicuring the grounds to protect our equity, it is still very much (even more) a full-time endeavor to maintain. 

Our neighbor Barbara, who now lives with her daughter by necessity, used to spend full days, five days a week nurturing and maintaining her lawn and gardens. She was an artist, always with projects-in-progress. She is missed. We miss others as well that have disconnected for one reason or another. To some we know and others we have known, chronic illness can be a scourge in one’s latter years. 

 -o-o-o-o-o-o 

Otherwise, our kids are all doing well. They are all prospering. They are living their own lives in accordance with their choices. They are happy. 

Nora’s kids came to visit a number of times. We spent two weeks in New York with some of my kids. It was great. It was more than great. These visits are what I consider to as of “real value.”

This year we are hosting our last family Christmas gathering. I am retiring from celebrating Christmas. I am happy and honored to have hosted numerous holiday and birthday gatherings over the years. 

Because Nora and myself are transitioning, the specifics of the future are yet to unfold. We are hopeful, grateful and blessed. We look forward to the years to come. 

Our best wishes and happy holidays to you all. Luis and Nora 

 -o-o-o-o-o-o-o- 

FloFlores Retreat and Nora’s Island Resort