Happy Birthday Jeff!

(This was a great 50's toy—it was a Doepke Yardbird—a little train
that ran on a track in our back yard.
The metal train car moved around the track by
cranking the handle between two kids—
definitely a team effort!)

I was blessed with SIX brothers—each one is special to me—each one so different; each having his own gifts and special qualities.
Today is the birthday of my older brother Jeff. Older, yes—but only by a year— born two days after Christmas. When you're born so close to Christmas, your birthday often gets lost in all the commotion.
I was born December 19th....not quite as close as December 27th.
Remembrance of the birthday of a brother as special as Jeff should never get lost—even for a moment.
He is a kind, gentle and compassionate person—always looking for ways to do do nice things for others.

I'm told that when I was born, Jeff was not thrilled. He was still a baby himself—only a year old. My mother tells the story of a time not too long after my arrival when Jeff tried to push my carriage down a hill...but all that is behind us.
Jeff is the brother who built the greatest forts and little houses when we were kids—and the brother who can restore just about anything. And he is the brother with the greatest imagination; creator of a family of "paint brush people"—each with its own individual personality.

A few years back he created a chair—a one of a kind creation—made up of numerous paint brush people.
But as they say-a picture is worth a thousand words...

My brother Geoffrey with his incredible carved chair—
each head intricately carved- Notice the spindles on the back of the chair-
each one an individual "paint brush person" The seat was also hand-rushed by Jeff.


Happy Birthday Jeff!