#3. Reconnecting Then Going Home

Wow! Where did the time go? Over a week has now come and gone and I’m flying back to Texas today; my new home.

In my visit to Michigan,  I reunited with mothers from our old neighborhood. We reminisced about our child rearing years. The recognition that it takes a village to raise a child and that all of us were part of that village for our children, will be a forever bond. It didn’t matter that we reflected a diversity of society relative to: race, ethnicity, religion and culture. We had an even stronger bond - trying to raise wholesome, good character, well rounded and diversity tolerant young people in turbulent times.

Next, I spent time with an old friend and colleague who served as the impetus for me starting this blog. We fell back into our former roles of serving as sounding boards for each other.  Out of this grew the title for my blog and the assignment from him to go forward and begin the blog! Here it is and Thanks to him for encouraging me to do it.

In the midst of these smaller groups of interactions, a very good friend arranged for a luncheon with a larger group of friends and colleagues from my time working at GM and Delphi. We talked of our many great adventures together: the introduction of lasers in manufacturing; invention and introduction of the Power Sliding Door and Power Liftgate; development of artificial intelligence products for dealership service technicians; refinement of SMC for the Corvette; obtaining my first and only patent; and many other technology firsts. We all worked in Research and Development; on the forefront of new and exciting technology over a 30 years+plus timeframe. It seemed like a great time was had by all in laughing and reminiscing about our various adventures together.

I spent one day with an old neighborhood friend who was the leader in the development and beautification of the Detroit Riverfront. We had one of our usual intellectually stimulating afternoons over a very tasty lunch.

I spent my last full day in Detroit covering many bases. We started with a hearty breakfast at Hudson Cafe. Next we were off to the Open House at Michigan Central - the decaying train station structure that is now a beautifully restored architectural gem both inside and outside.

Later my son and his wife hosted a small group of their friends for a Game Night gathering. And to my delight I met 9 month old Vanessa. I so enjoyed playing and laughing with her.  In the midst of game night Karl and I worked on creating my Blog! We stayed focused on it until my first postings were completed and published. Thanks Karl!

What can I say about my trip to Michigan? In the jargon of some old Negro songs: Oh What a Time! What a Time! What a Time!!

Now back to my Texas home!