Monday was Paul's birthday, and Katrien (his eldest daughter) and I got together to celebrate. I think I'll let her tell you about it, in her own words and photos.
Dear all,
June 15 was Paul's birthday. I celebrated it together with Bob by throwing the small amount of ashes that I took with me to Stanford in the San Francisco Bay.
Well, it was not exactly throwing... the part of the Bay behind Bob's house is quite peculiar:
We had to find a way to get the ashes in the bay. Therefore, Bob and I first did a little prospection to check the tide and the amount of mud we had to conquer. It was a warm California afternoon.... that clearly inspired us to find the perfect way to do this:
A little boat!!!!!!
So Katrien rolled up her pants and got out there in the mud:
We put the little boat in a side ?puddle? of the bay and the little sail immediately caught the wind... For a minute or five the boat just made funny circles on the water trying to get around the sticks to find its way to the bay... It was an amusing but also peaceful thing to watch...
And then suddenly, too soon and completely unexpected, the boat just sunk... it took less than a second:
... when the tide goes away, it will take a part of the ashes with it, to the rest of the bay and maybe even into the Pacific...
It was good, and warm and not sad at all. Bob and I went inside to finish the risotto and clean the shrimps... we had good wine and talked about Paul, and life...
Katrien
??
The little boat was half of a walnut shell, a toothpick, and post-it note. We hadn't planned this, it was just improvised, but Paul and his brothers were always building little boats as children, so we thought he would enjoy it.
In addition to this final trip on the Bay, he has quite an itinerary ahead. Little bits (as Katrien puts it) will also end up in:
- Port de la Selva, Spain (one of his favorite places)
- Cheilly-les-Maranges, France (if I remember well, some friends have a vineyard here that the family often visits)
- Nord (North) Sea, somewhere off Belgium (via another sailing friend)
The big part will eventually go to Meerdael Wood in Oud-Heverlee near Leuven, Belgium. This forest is quite close to the family home, and Katrien described a beautiful path, lined with tall trees on either side, where the family took many walks together, especially around family celebrations. (It seems there is both a Forest and a Wood, so
this may not be it, but it's probably pretty close.)
One other note: they have decided that Bonnie, and the rest of Paul's musical gear, will remain in the family home, indefinitely; his son Joost has been playing them quite regularly.
As Katrien said, it was not sad at all. The two of us had a truly wonderful time, celebrating Paul's life and his birthday, and it seemed right to share that with you as best we could.
-Bob
