A New Adventure at Oceanside

January 1, 2012

Dear Friends,

Over the Christmas break, our oldest daughter, Iris and her husband, John invited us to join to stay with them in a holiday vacation house, which they rented and is located in Oceanside Beach, a very lovely beach town along the Oregon Pacific Coast. Iris and John are a couple who love outdoor activities and their daughter, Lia who is 7 years old also loves outdoor activities. She shows curiosity and knows a lot more about ocean life: fish, birds, plants than her grandpa and grandma combined. We had a great time there.

On an evening when the tide was out, John suggested that we should go out to get some mussels and I was very happy to join them. I followed John and Lia hopping around the beach and along slippery rocks acting as if I was still in my early fifties and not in the middle of my seventies. An accident was waiting to happen to give me a memorable lesson. The attached poem was a result of my unwise adventure. I respectfully advise my friends in their old age that you should behave wisely and do not make the same mistake I made.

Wishing you all a very happy and healthy new year!

Sincerely, Ken

Limping along, an old man

I thought I was a 50 years old young man

But, no, I wasn’t

Along the out-going tide

I chased fresh mussels with excitement

On the slippery rocks harboring many

Following a young man in his forties

And his 7 year old daughter

Jumping, hopping, leaping

Just like a 50 years old young man

But, no, I wasn’t

Ah! I landed on a slippery slope

A simple wrong step

Sudden loss of balance

Excruciating pain alarmed my whole body

Finding its way to my ankle

Luckily it wasn’t broken

But, it was bad

Sprained was the result

It was too late

To realize I wasn’t 50 anymore

Shouldn’t act as if I was

Shaking, limping, wobbling,

I barely stood in one piece

Along the out-going tide

Recollecting the chase of fresh mussels

With a noble idea

Of providing the waiting family

 An appetizer of ocean flavors

At the dinner table

In an Oceanside resort house

On the top of the rugged rocks

Along the Pacific Ocean of the Oregon Coast

I admired the horizon at an eternal distance

Though the move was unwise

The scene of the receding tide was spectacular 

The tired sun was limping along

Between the layers of clouds

Retiring from a long day’s activity

Preparing for a long winter’s night rest

Quaking, limping, quietly wobbling

Kenneth N. Han

On a wintery day

At Oceanside Beach, Oregon

December 21, 2011