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Poem from Lael

August 2, 2016

Among Lael's papers he had inserted this poem, to be found by family. Please click on the image to see an enlarged copy.

I know I've been thinking of the happy memories often lately. The irony is they make me sad and wish for more. But I'm thankful the many memories I have with Lael. I know we all are.



 

Lael and his little sister Meredith

July 31, 2016

A series of photos of my life with my terrific big brother who was there for me every day of my life. I will miss him for the rest of my life.

Summer Golf Group

July 31, 2016

Since I was there at the beginning of the Summer Golf Groups outings, we had many many laughs and fun golf, not serious golf but fun golf.  Laughs were provided by Tom Dozal and his never ending jokes, long time 19th Hole, great meals and of course, "Joke for a Gift" which highlighted our early outings.  Health ended my golf and you took over as a supreme coordinator of subsequent gatherings and kept the group going for many years.  I always enjoyed getting together with you for an update.

Lael, you will be greatly missed but I have many lasting memmories of you for me to draw from when I need a good laugh.  I met your sons during our trips and I hope they took lessons from someone other than you.  They loved you dearly and showed it on every bad shot you made or score you posted, always a hug for dad. Your family made you a very lucky man and they were just a lucky to have you as a husband, father and grandfather. 

You will be with my thoughts for ever as when ever I need a laugh or thinking of a good experience, your image will be there with that "OREGON" shirt instead of a fine "WSU" one. 

Blain 

Grateful for the times with Lael

July 20, 2016

The first year I was invited to go on the annual Prock golf trip, Lael had decided he wanted to win the trophy and was going to stack the deck in his favor if necessary to make that happen. The golf trip was a four-day tournament with many of Lael's friends, sons, and sons-in-law,  like myself. 

The first three days of the trip each player turned their score into Lael, and for the fourth day, which was the tournament scramble, he would announce the teams, based on the previous days scores. He tried very hard to make evenly balanced teams, with good players and bad players. But Lael had never been on the winning team in something like 16 years. This year was going to be different. He wanted to win that trophy! And so he put Curtis and Tyler and myself on his team. I fully agreed with his choice in Curtis and Tyler as they are excellent golfers. But for some reason he chose me to fill the slot of worst player on the team, and I know I was not even close to the best of the worst players. 

As we played our round that day, and as I hit poor shot after poor shot, I expressed my concern over his ability to stack a winning team. But he assured me we were doing fine, and I still had plenty of time to make some good shots. We did win that day. Somehow. I do know how. Curtis just plays a different kind of golf game, one where balls fly far and straight and go in the hole when you threaten them with a putter. I can only imagine…

I was fortunate to golf with Lael many times. He tried and failed to teach me golf etiquette; he tried and failed to teach me natural golf, but he did succeed in teaching me his favorite thing, ready-golf.

There was nothing finer than a weekday evening at Desert Aire when nobody was on the course, and Lael and I would squeeze in 9 holes before it got dark. I felt I was playing Lael's private course. And since we were alone we'd play two balls each!

I started out a terrible golfer, but as the years went by and Lael’s game began to slip while mine improved - to the point we were pretty equal, I was proud to tell people that I golfed like a 70-year-old man.

As I thought about Lael and the impact he has had on me I can't say I've known anyone like him. I didn’t know my father well, but I do know he was nothing like Lael. I knew my grandfather better, but still, he was nothing like Lael.

I remember going to my own grandfather's retirement party. I was little, about 10, and was fascinated by all these strange people who heaped praise and respect on him. But I couldn't relate, because he wasn't praiseworthy at home. He wasn't a bad guy; he just didn't show genuine care, interest or concern for anyone in the family.

But with Lael, it was a different story. I was privileged to go to Lael's retirement party and hear all these people unknown to me heap praise and respect on him. I was fascinated, I was thrilled, by this other side of Lael, because it fit perfectly with the character of the man I knew already.

I have other glorious memories with Lael. Like going to the dump. It was my duty, he explained to me, since I owned a utility trailer, to help the family out with dump runs. After several semi-annual trips to the dump, he informed that "this is the last time, I've gotten rid of all the junk now." A few months later he called up to say "Don, you won't believe this, but I need to do a dump run. I don't know where all this junk came from. It will be the last time, I'm sure." And so it went for years. But I didn't mind one bit.

Lael and I had many conversations over the years. He told me a few times about Puako being his favorite place on the Earth. "On the Earth?", I would question.

“Yes, on the Earth.” he would affirm.

Well, I had to experience Puako. Ericka and I saved up some money, then one evening after Sunday night dinner I asked him when he might go back because we wanted to go. He was thrilled to share his paradise with us. With the help of the Ednie's Ericka and I rented the house next to their cottage, where Lael and Michelle stayed, and we, with our two little girls, Stella, and Clara, got to experience Puako. It was every bit the paradise Lael described. Remote, private, no hustle, no bustle. Whales, turtles, fish, the Ednies. It was everything that rest, relaxation, and recharging should be. We will never forget our special trip with Lael to his favorite place on Earth.

You should know that Lael was the closest thing to a father figure I've had in my life. The things he did resonated with my desires to be a good man, a good husband, and a good father. In particular, finding joy in the family. For example, Sunday night dinners and holiday gatherings were important to him, and he made sure they happened. I'd never known a man who seemed to care about those things. Only aunties and grandmas cared about family events. Menfolk just followed along. But Lael was the initiator, and the way I see it, that is what a man should be.

I think what I mean is revealed in an email exchange we had ten years ago. On June 14, 2006, Lael sent this email to his family:

"Well after a number of years of not having a family get together around the 4th of July it looks like we will be able to do it once again.  Hopefully it will be the start of many family 4th of July fests in the years to come at Desert Aire.

I hope everyone is as excited as I am about this.   It’s not the Ranch but it certainly has a lot to offer for everyone."

I quickly replied:

"This is very cool, and I know all the Smiths are excited. I'm also excited for you, because when I think about when I am a grandfather this is exactly the kind of thing I'd like to be able to do; that is gathering the kids and grandkids together at some fun place for special occasions, or as often as possible. :) "

And this was Lael's response: 

"You got it right………..and you now know my secret plan.   It couldn’t be any more special than getting all the family together for something like this.  This is the whole point of Desert Aire.    The ultimate success of the place is gatherings like this and everyone using it for their family and friends all year long as well.  Hopefully you will be able to do the same when you become a grandfather.

 

Lael"

 

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