Telephone Rock

"Rock rock rock rock rock,
The telephone rock.
Everybody sing now.
Rock rock rock,
The telephone rock.
It's the latest thing yeah.
Rock rock rock,
The telephone rock.
Ya know ya hear that ring now.
Rock rock rock,
The telephone rock!"
- Sesame Street

I could not imagine living so far from home and having limited communication with loved ones. When phone calls where too expensive people relied on mail, taking weeks for their letters of love to arrive. Then came computer. E-mail and instant chat lets you talk with anyone "live" but only through key board strokes, aborting the human voice and emotion.


Thanks to Skype, we have spent $12.19 on out-going phone calls ($0.021/minute) since our arrival April 1. AMAZING!! For all in-coming calls, we paid $30 for 12-months and were able to pick any area and country code that we would like our home number to be. Thinking of our family's residence, we opted for an 817 area code. Both Grandmas, Aunt "M", and friends with a DFW metro number can call us from home for free. With Skype downloaded on your computer (its free), we can talk for free... unlimited. And with the blessing of web cams, Grandmas can watch Big & Little grow. Unfortunately, we always have to keep in mind the 8 hour time difference between Texas and Helsinki!

Being so far from my family during this time of loss...it has been nice to receive frequent phone calls from everyone. Thank you for all your calls, e-mails, letters & care-packages (even though they were mailed prior to), prayers, and thoughts during this time of sadness and loneliness. It is nice to feel loved through the miles.

Dad's body was cremated today at 0900 Texas time. May his memory, spirit, and soul live forever!

"It is not Death that will come to fetch me, it is the good God...death is the separation of soul and body...I am not afraid of a separation which will unite me to the good God forever." - Saint Therese, The Little Flower