Reflections on Mike’s Memorial Day

We had a lovely day to go to Northfield and the service was a wonderful tribute to Mike. Olivers, Picketts, Dickinson, Legrands, Tony, Mary Kay, Terry and I were there. Becky Zrimzek from the Alumni Office was there, too. BTW, the church has been beautifully restored! What a pleasant place.  Mike’s touch was evident in ever detail of the service. Instead of reading from the Bible, the minister read sections of Mike’s cookbook that had amazingly scriptural messages!

The Star Tribune obituary was published today and except for the fact that Jim Fisher was not in our class, every thing was wonderful about it and Mike’s sister was pleased. Jim Fisher was there as well as the woman who teaches ag at the U of Mn, who wrote the letter for you. Mike Gill was not there but he and his son and Jim Fisher were at the farm about May 10 and had dinner/party with Mike. Mike said that night,”I’m going to die. pause..but then so will everyone else!” The pictures that day showed an almost unrecognizable Mike, compared to when we were there 8 weeks before. The last five days, his two brothers moved into the farmhouse and they shared the responsibilities with Mary Ellen. She looked tired, but said she had had several good nights sleep since last Friday, when he died. Jim Fisher started the tributes/remembrances, I did a bit of storytelling about our arrival in Pokhara, wearing our engineer hats..(I had mine with me and put it on,) and Mike waiting for us at the gate, laughing because some children had run down the hill among the babies and cows faster than we could maneuver, to tell Mike, “There is a whole bus full of old people up there!”

Several family members spoke, emails from all over the world were read, a young woman who grew up on the cooperative farm spoke, several Nepalis living in MN spoke. It couldn’t have been a nicer memorial service.

Ian Barbour and his wife were there, Bardwell Smith and his wife, and Ann Follansbee Wright, and Wayne Carver. Wayne told Terry he couldn’t hear a thing during the service, but that he laughed when the woman next to him did. A highlight was talking with Bardwell Smith. Rolf and Bill really had a good time, talking about Bardwell’s time in Japan in WWII and their Vietnam experience. We promised ourselves we will go down to meet with Bardwell again, at one of the coffee shops.

Another highlight for me was visiting with Ian Lessing, Mary Ellen’s handsome and kind son, about age 43. He is the computer something in Santa Barbara. He first went to visit his Uncle Mike in Nepal when he was 16.The church served sandwiches, potato salad, watermelon, and as we say in MN, “bars.” We were among the last to leave.

 Visualize the 108 oil lamps that are burning today for Mike at the Buddhist Stupa in Kathmandu and the108 lamps burning for him at the Hindu temple that we visited: think Mother Teresa’s hostel, monkeys suddenly darting among us, funeral pyres and the boxes of fabulous colored dyes for Holi. Then there was an open house at Mike’s Breakfast in Kathmandu from 10-12 am. The number 108 is meant to honor someone of great importance. The number decreases if you are less important.

In case you want to get a copy of Mike’s Breakfast Cookbook.