gotohealth's Blog

New Year Eve 2017, the Goto brothers and sisters gathered to wish Sam Goto farewell.  As the day passed, sister Irene commented, “Do you realize Sam was born on the 13th and today is the 31st?” 

 

When Sam and I first started dating in 1960, I was studying at his 1438 Medical Dental Building office. As a Dental Technician, working late for Sam was common. I was completing my Public Health Nursing degree at the University of Washington. For some reason, Sam commented, “I was born on Friday the 13th.” That year the Seattle phone directory had calendars for many previous years. So, I looked up when Friday the 13th occurred in 1933, knowing he was six years older than me. 

 

I found Friday the 13th was in January that year. Since my birthday is January 14th, it was another confirmation that maybe we were meant to be together? If one believes in Numerology, I’m a number 1 and Sam is a number 3, which together is a 13? :-)

 

He had two birthday parties, one when he was 13 and the other when he was 31.  

 

Several years later, in 1971, we decided to reward ourselves with a 10th anniversary trip to Japan. We had to go to the City of Seattle Vital Statistics to get a copy of his birth certificate to get our passport. 

 

To our surprise, not only was Sam born on Friday the 13th, he was born at 1303 Washington Street, at 3am at the home of a Japanese midwife. He was listed as the 3rd child of a mother 23 and a father 33. Their address was Lot 1, box 31 - 3C, Renton, Washington.

 

One month later, we were at the Takanawa Prince Hotel in Tokyo. I was hanging my dress in the closet and saw that the cleaning tag was #3. Then Sam and I talked about the day being October 3rd. But we commented, “At least we are on the 14th floor.” The next morning we realized there was no 13th floor so our room was actually on floor 13. 

 

Subsequently, our life has been filled with 3s, 13s, coincidences and serendipities. It wasn’t totally clear, but in his last days, we asked him to give us sign of his communication after his passing. He indicated that it would be for us to notice the number13.

 

Christmas Eve was always exceptional, from the snowy 1961 evening in Eastern Oregon to the snowy 2017 goodby on Mercer Island. 

 

Sam and I were married in Ontario, Oregon, at the First Baptist Church on Christmas Eve. It was a Sunday that year and the day my favorite Uncles would take time off from their Ontario Market business to be able to attend.

 

Sam created 56 more wonderful Christmas Eve memories. It was always special and always included the girls. One of the best memories is when we went to the Red Lion on Airport Way. Those days, restaurants were empty on Christmas Eve so we kind of had the whole place to ourselves. The memory was around 1971. WE WERE IMPRESSED and we still talks about the memory because the chef brought the salad ingredients on a cart to our table, tossing it and serving us individually!

 

I think that was the year Sam made me a charm bracelet with ten gold charms commemorating special moments in our 10 year marriage. Thereafter, I got a gold ring stapled to a silly card every year where we were out celebrating Christmas eve. My favorite is the ring that is the image of our house, we built in 1973. Another favorite is a black rock from our back yard, made to look like a rabbit with a gold heart on it’s butt, because that is my birth year sign. I often wear the cat curled up around a pearl because we saw the broadway musical CATS in New York that year.

 

A Sam favorite ring memory might be the illegal rock he picked up on our trip to Machu Picchu in Peru. It might also be the Mammoth Image ring commemorating a trip to the South Dakota Hot Springs Mammoth dig in 1995. Sam was Vice President of his high school senior class in Nampa, Idaho, and the president was Larry Agenbroad, Paleontologist, who created the Mammoth sight and has been on National Geographic Specials several times. 

 

Japanese style, Sam put an extra ordinary amount of thought into not being publicly recognized, but family were the benefactors for his private creativity and Love. We continue to revel in the legacy of 56 Christmas Eve gold ring memories, his 240 cartoon strips and his 40 years of never missing bi-monthly Shaklee newsletter drawings. 

 

There is more and more empirical evidence that Sam likely continues to extend his energy in what our family may be creating today? LOVE IT!!

The newest version of my “purpose in life” is:  To keep learning ways to know God and spread HAPPIERNESS - little steps of personal responsibility bringing a little more happiness every day. The grand goal of “happy” is just staying on the life path towards gaining wisdom and fulfillment. 

 

One of those little happierness ways, for Sam and me, has been to spread stories about family and heritage values. We’ve needed everyone’s input!! Our family tree is expanding with Grandson Joey and Alex getting married this next April.

 

With the publishing of our family stories in COLUMBIA MAGAZINE, I’ve gotten to be closer friends with editor, Julianna Verboort. I am excited! She has agreed to collaborate in being a “Developmental Editor” as we produce a Historical Fiction novel with a melding of Sam and his dad’s character as the main protagonist. 

 

Having Kelly and the girl’s activities close brings a lot of smiles. Now that Kirin can drive, no one has to awaken @ 5:30 four days a week to take her to 6:15am Drill Team practices nor evening rush hour driving for Karate in North Seattle.

 

Our next OMOIDE (MEMORIES) book will be: STORIES OF RESILIENCE AND COMPASSION DURING HARDSHIP. Please call me, if you know a story about hardship times before and after incarceration where a community member stepped in to help. Maybe a neighbor/friend took care of your family house or property while everyone went to camp or maybe a teacher/mentor made a big difference in your life? Also incidents of picking up our own bootstraps during hard times is important!

 

“The important thing is to never stop questioning!” -Einstein

 

DEE GOTO AND GIRLS

 

GO SANTA BARBARA SWIM TEAM GAUCHOS!!!!!