This will be a short posting as my wife and I are devastated with all the bad happenings around us.

It was my intention to talk about our hot pot for Chinese News Year’s or about our trip to Paso Robles for the Wine Harvest and Launch party at the Niner’s Vineyard – where we got to enjoy some great plates paired with excellent wine during an evening party. I was going to talk about our quick excursion to Moro Bay, a place that I always love to go in the early mornings in order to ‘walk the rock’, walk the beach or visit the quaint little shops. I was even going to talk about my getting back into Swift programming so that I can continue with my iPad Monkey Maze game.

But the fact is that this was once again it’s a very sad month. After coming back from an emotionally-exhausting trip to Montréal where I went through my parents belongings shortly after my father passed away, the trip to Paso was only a brief moment of escape.

Just as we were planning to head back to Montréal a third and final time to finish up cleaning out my parents home, the unexpected happened… Ayano’s father passed away.

He was a man of integrity. A man of deep philosophy (we had many late night discussions). A man of sincere respect for others and a man always willing to help and teach others. He even did our windows when he came over to visit a few years back, explaining like a teacher every step of the way (I was just thankful to get some free window cleaning – :D)

I felt so honored to have gotten to know him and to become a part of his family.

Going through my emails this month, I came across one of his many communiqués. It was sent shortly after we spent a week traveling to the various National Parks that Arizona and Utah have to offer.

This message was received on June 23, 2012
From: 井上博文

Thank you very much for your hospitality.
Michiyo and I enjoyed this travel.
Hiking the “grand ” trails with Michiyo reminds me of young days.

See you again in Japan.
Bye.
         Michiyo and Hirobumi

I always looked forward to when he came over to visit as it always made for some interesting and knowledgable interactions.

He was my mentor, my family, and my friend.

I will miss him.