Today is the second anniversary of my husband Bob's death. And leading up to this day I've done a lot of thinking about him - mostly about how much I miss him and need him. I also read through some letters I received from friends after he died. I'd like to share a couple with you. This first one is from Jack (Wizard) Doyle, my high school friend, Annie's, husband. Here are his beautiful and thoughtful words: Dear Madeline, I treasured my friendship with Bob. He was more than special; he was exceptional. Bob had the rare ability to relate to everyone he encountered. A common thread throughout his memorial service emphasized how well he connected with each individual be they a toddler, a new acquaintance or a skilled professional. Robert Sharples was a man of the keenest intellect, a man of constant curiosity who never stopped learning. He was a man of empathy who had the stature of a polymath to me. I too loved completing the Sunday LA Times crossword puzzle with Bob. … [Read more...]
Leaving an island paradise
Blog Editor, Linda Hoye, recently asked Story Circle Network's One Woman's Day contributors to consider a place they hold dear and to write about a special day they spent there or, perhaps the day they left. I accepted the challenge and wrote about the bittersweet leaving of our family's home in the South Pacific. Here's my story, recently published in the Story Circle Network's March Journal: Leaving An Island Paradise From January 1977 to September 1978 I lived with my family on an island in the South Pacific Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. The island is a military base, and my husband Bob managed a military-funded program there. We had a slow and easy life on the island, filled with all kinds of beach and water activities. When we arrived our sons Paul was five and Ben was two and a half. When we left Paul was seven and Ben four. Ben was glad to leave; Paul could have stayed forever. However, when we first stepped off the plane (a military carrier with no … [Read more...]
Some old stories
In 2012 and 2013 I contributed to a website called Storylane. It inspired me to write very short pieces about a variety of subjects. Unfortunately, Storylane no longer exists, but packrat that I am I saved every piece I submitted. Here's a few: How I Got My First Job Out of College I graduated from UCLA with a degree in English and had no idea what I would do professionally after getting it. I had wanted to work as a journalist and actually completed all the course work for a degree in journalism at the University of Wisconsin. But family illness caused me to transfer to UCLA for my senior year, and UCLA didn't offer a BA degree in journalism. So I was stuck in a city I didn't know, and hardly knowing anyone in it. I tried valiantly and unsuccessfully early on to get a writing job and then gave up. It was 1962. Not a lot of jobs for women writers in those days, especially in Los Angeles. Then someone suggested I try the growing aerospace business in southern California. And I … [Read more...]
Life in the South Pacific
Our family lived in the South Pacific on a military base called Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands from January 1977 until September 1978. Paul was five and Ben two and a half when we arrived. Paul absolutely loved it there while Ben hardly has any memory of it. Paul attended Kindergarten and first grade on the island. Ben couldn't attend the nursery school until he turned three so I took him to a baby sitter for an hour or so every day until he was old enough to go to school. He had some little friends to play with, and I learned how to hit a tennis ball. Bob managed a software test program, and although I never had a paying job there, I did some volunteer activities. However, I used to get up early every morning and write. In fact, my Kwaj journal entries turned into an article that was published in our company magazine after our return. We also traveled into Micronesia twice to Ponape, Yap, Palau and Guam, and we stayed in Hawaii on the way there and on the way home. You can … [Read more...]
