--- Ruth Temple wrote:
> Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 11:13:52 -0800 (PST)
> From: Ruth Temple
>
> Received the newws from Loren, and wrote this to my family-
> Dorothy and Lorey Washburn are another set of parents in a grand- sense of
> the term. His folks were enough older that when they married, Dorothy had
> the delight of being welcomed as a daughter who was like a grand-daughter,
> and they were tickled to welcome me in the same warm spirit.
> They were very welcoming not only to me, but made overtures to the rest of
> our family, writing the folks and welcoming Tamara for Thanksgiving holidays
> a few years. The first time I visited them with Loren, Lorey made a point of
> drawing me aside and saying, as we were all retiring for the evening, that
> they liked me very much, and that I was welcome to the family.
>
> When I took a week-long violin construction workshop, they opened their home
> for me to stay and commute over to Thousand Oaks to my classes, and we talked
> into the wee hours every night, about art & life & families, and wood-working
> (Lorey made grandfather clocks and had a splendid woodshop out behind the
> orchid greenhouse).
>
> As and after Loren and I changed our relationship from householding partners
> to dear friends, the Folks Washburn and I have chosen to "keep one another"
> as Family, and have kept in touch.
>
> Lorey had a tremendous, if quiet & subtle, sense of humor. Dorothy has a
> thicket of black bamboo in the side yard; once after thinning the canes,
> Lorey put some of the green-cut bamboo in the fireplace ... after about
> 30 minutes, he remarked casually how well that bamboo was burning...(it
> was charcoal in the gas flame by that time, mind you!).
>
> He worked as a fireman, and sang in the Methodist church choir most of his
> life. The first Washburn family home was built in the walnut orchards of the
> San Fernando Valley on their folks' land.
>
> After more than 65 years of marriage, Dorothy and Lorey were lovebirds, as
> sweet on each other as when they were newlyweds, and it was a delight of an
> example to see!
>
> What great last words - from someone who found all of his life to be
> delicious:
>
> --- Loren Washburn wrote:
> > Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 11:22:45 -0800
> > From: Loren Washburn
> > Subject: passing of a good man
> >
> > My father, Smith Lorenzo Washburn passed away this weekend
> > after a long and wonderful lifeand after a lingering and
> > dibilitaing form of blood cancer, myelodysplasia. He was
> > 89. He asked my mom for a drink of water, being too weak to
> > do anything but sip through a staw by now. He drank and
> > said 'My that tasted wonderful' and closed his eyes. Iin a
> > few minutes they realized that he had left them.
> > 'Share water share life', and what a wonderful comment on
> > his life!
> >
> > - Loren
>
> Love,
> Ruth

So, I'm off to hug the living family-of-choice and tell the stories
and sing the songs and Remember - full of love.
-Ru