Monday, July 24, 2006

my brother visited ...



i've just had a wonderful visit with my baby brother ... my only brother ... he stopped over at our place for the night ... he's on his way to Astoria, Oregan to play at the
Finn Fest 2006 ...

our visits are usually short in nature ... but always sweet ... with e-mail and telephones, it hasn't seemed like 2 whole years since our last face to face chat! years truly do travel at an accelerated pace after a certain age!

my brother tells the best stories ... the city he lives in had just hosted a large Finnish gathering (he was the Chairman of that), so he entertained us with one story after another ... i tend to like listening and he likes to spin yarns, so i think we both had a good time ...



he also had this neat little stringed instrument, called the Jouhikko, with him ...


it is an old traditional Finnish instrument, which has been revived in the past few years ... in fact it is being used in the theatre production of the Lord of the Rings ... so he played some toe tapping tunes for us ... it was wonderful to have a happy occasion with a sibling ... truly a joy ...


Family faces are magic mirrors. Looking at people who belong to us, we see the past, present and future.
-Gail Lumet Buckley



15 comments:

Captainwow said...

YAY for a good visit and for good music and good stories!!

Anonymous said...

Had such a visit with my favorite brother this fall when he came to see me...how blessed are such times!! I will always tresure the laughter we shared!!

Saija said...

cptnwow ... YAY for sure ... hope little Sam is enjoying the wonders of his very first summer! :o)

elizabeth ... aren't brothers fun? truly a blessing ...

Terry said...

That is so nice Saija!'.....It is really funny how even though we get older the times we spend with our brothers and sisters, it just seems like the Lord allows time to stand still for a moment and we are right back in our younger kid days and it seems like yesterday!!!
Older[ha! and BIGGER] in body and yet even younger in heart!...Love Terry

Oscar R. Warren said...

I like old timey stuff. Thanks for the video clip of your brother playing the... thing. he he!

Catherine said...

Wonderful news! I'm so glad you got a face-to-face visit with your brother! I see my brothers just once or twice a year now that they both live out of town, and every moment with them is precious. There is nothing in the world like time spent with a sibling.

Saija said...

terry ... a sibling is someone to share those sweet (or not sweet!) childhood memories with ... and it is just like going back in time to visit with him ... my sisters are so much younger than i am (from mom's second marriage) that the memories are of a different nature ... blessings!

osray ... i thought you might get a kick out of it ... and he'll be in your neck of the woods too ... i wished i would have had the time to go along ... we've had fun on road trips before ... :o)

catherine ... i agree ... siblings are fun to have ... and i only have the one brother, plus a handful of younger sisters, so all of us girls do dote on him ... *grin*

Fred said...

Glad you had a nice visit with your brother. My two sisters travel to Florida every fall to visit with my parents on the east coast, then they all trek over here to Tampa to stay for a few days. I'm thankful they take the time out of their schedule to fly down and see us.

Saija said...

fred ... i love it when i can entertain family, rather than travelling to their place ... bad, eh! my excuse is that leo doesn't travel well and i hate to always go alone ... it was good for leo to visit with him too ... :o) ... i'm glad you and your sisters are close!

Pilot Mom said...

Isn't it wonderful to have face to face visits with family? I have to agree that your fit is perfect with you listening and him "spinning." ;)

I love old instruments like this, especially to watch and listen as someone who knows how actually plays it.

Saija said...

claire ... ya, nothing can beat the face to face and big hugs that go along with them! :o) ... i also love the folksy items from a simpler time ... hope your summer has been blessed!

Jammie J. said...

i'm so glad you had some time with your brother. you've mentioned him before, yes? what an interesting instrument -- did he play it for you? :)

Saija said...

jeanette ... yes, i've blogged abit about him ... and he did give us a little concert ... the sound was kind of like a fiddle ... hope you are surviving the heat you guys are having!!! yikes!!!

Maiju said...

Oh, Saija, I envy your brother! I've always wanted to be able to play the jouhikko. When I attended Kantele camps in Ilomantsi there was always a group that played jouhikko too but I didn't get to do it. It's so Finnish!

Glad you had a good visit!

Saija said...

maiju ... he is really enjoying this particular instrument ... a famous finnish jouhikko player brought it to him from finland ... (i forgot his name! i'm so bad with stuff like that!) ... it is certainly a unique little gadget!