[Oe List ...] We are collecting stories for Marge Philbrook's 85th Birthday Celebration

Wed May 29 21:11:40 PDT 2013

Dearest Marge,

You are the Greatest!

I know that many daughterinlaws might not understand why I enjoy coming 
to Chicago and visiting with you. I have never had any mother-in-law 
problems and just the opposite. You have always been the spark who 
hosted everyone and made them feel welcome. I could see gifts that I had 
given you decorating your apartment and clothes that I had bought were 
being worn. You hem and sewed everyone's clothes and typed over 100 
words per minute without blinking an eye. We borrowed your car, shared 
your frig and even use your tv and computer which are available to 
residents so they can feel right at home too. Time and again you see the 
need and do the deed.

When my children came to Green Rise (I want to say Kemper) after living 
most of their life outside the USA, you were watchful, but gave them the 
space to decide what they want to do and how they would go about doing 
it in their college years. I remember asking about their grades. You 
said, it is none of my business. If they want to tell me they will. They 
can decide. They say people who are creative can say "Yes and....", or 
"What if"...you were way ahead of the curve and I thought may be you 
created the slogan "Yes we can", and not Obama! A couple of times when 
Larry was not with me, I even shared a bed with you and this amazed my 
Chinese girlfriends to no end! You and Phil actually came to Kenya to 
marry us ...but that is another story...

Our family's history is like building memories with stories that become 
legend. Lela always liked chicken and heard your story about learning to 
cook fried chicken for Sunday dinners and guess what... now Lela fries 
her own chicken! We heard about your wheat bran and pineapple juice 
reducing cholesterol and are still having it in the morning. ETF is just 
a sample... all the tapping and all the DIY books are really about 
deciding to care for yourself and take responsibility for your own 
health. Half the goal of healing is believing you can be healed and can 
heal others. It is saying the Divine has always been with us and always 
will be with us. Alpha and Omega. God is Good, Life is Good. Amen...

You are a walking miracle worker and such a gift to us all. Thank you 
for being you!

I am sorry we will not join you and Conan for your birthday this year! 
We will be there at Christmas instead!  So everyone should raise their 
glasses and toast to Marjorie Philbrook...she likes pineapple juice, 
eats turkey and salmon and has watermelon instead of cake for her 
birthday! Go Girl!

You are the Greatest!
l
Love,

Evelyn Kurihara Philbrook who has lived in Taiwan over 22 years and 
never been to the Great Wall of China, so we celebrate Marge's birthday 
by doing just that with my special partner, Larry Philbrook, who has 
waited to all these years to see it.

On 5/30/13 12:41 AM, Jack Gilles wrote:
> Dear Marj,uter
>
> I remember the first time I encountered you. It was in one of the 
> early summer programs at 4750. I knew of you before that but this time 
> you were doing the summer print shop. I remember seeing you during the 
> day and I knew you were up most of the night. You never looked tired! 
> I couldn't believe that you seemed to go 24/7! They may have called 
> Margaret Thatcher "The Iron Lady", but we all know that you were the 
> first with that name and I sign for all to see! No burden to large, 
> the first answer always yes, and corporate to the core. Happy birthday 
> to you, from Jack and Judy.
>
> Grace & Peace,
>
> Jack
>
> On May 29, 2013, at 10:58 AM, Ken Fisher <hkf232 at gmail.com 
> <mailto:hkf232 at gmail.com>> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>>
>> Dear Marj,
>>
>> Happy 85th !!!
>>
>> The closest I got to being assigned with you was a year with your 
>> teen-age son, Larry, in D.C.That was a very big introduction.(He 
>> taught me to say 'Y'all')
>>
>> I am a bit self-conscious in using the word 'big' with your family, 
>> however with you and L.E. that would have to be one of the 
>> adjectives.Over the years we've had many conversations.While I can 
>> hardly recall the content of any, I can get back into 'the feel' of 
>> being with you.
>>
>> For me, you have a kind of jarring autonomy and, always in the same 
>> moment, you are an utterly solid anchor of corporateness.
>>
>> You are utterly reliable.  You are utterly collegial.
>>
>> And of course, you are the mother of a grand clan of loyalists to our 
>> collective well-being.
>>
>> With much love and affection,
>>
>> Ken Fisher
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> OE mailing list
>> OE at lists.wedgeblade.net <mailto:OE at lists.wedgeblade.net>
>> http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> OE mailing list
> OE at lists.wedgeblade.net
> http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.wedgeblade.net/pipermail/oe-wedgeblade.net/attachments/20130530/ab557e13/attachment.html>