In July I took a short trip to Montreal to visit my Canadian daughters and grandchildren. I case you are wondering how I obtained Canadian daughters and grandchildren, in 1988 Connie and I hosted an exchange student in our home for a year. She and her sisters did not want a relationship with their father. For that reason, four years after Marie-Pierre returned home, and she graduated from University of Toronto, she started calling me dad. Through the years we visited Montreal numerous times. About 1996, she partnered with Steve and in 2005 their first child was born, Mael. In 2010 Lilou was born.
Unfortunately, a childhood inherited disease took the life of Lilou and Mael's father while in his early 40's. While attending his funeral, Marie's sister, Rosalie took a moment to thank me for "filling in" as a father to Marie and a grandfather to her children. I took the opportunity to tell Rosalie, if she needed a father too, and a grandfather for the child she was about to deliver, I still had room in my heart to fill that role and she gratefully accepted, and in less than a month, she delivered my third Canadian grandchild, Edmond. In the picture below, Edmond is in the middle, Lilou on the left.
When I returned to Saratoga, Lilou traveled with me for a week's vacation in California, a great deal of which was spent in the jacuzzi where she tried to be a dolphin. Third photo is 9 month-old granddaughter, Lily
Bruce E. Hodgin
