(Scroll down for links to my previous 8 blog tributes to Joanna since her passing.)
Joanna passed away 9 months ago today on Feb. 14. Somehow, the days, weeks, and months keep moving along, and I keep half-expecting to see Joanna “reappear” around every corner I turn, even though I know that’s not going to happen. The passage of time hasn’t made her absence any easier for me. She was the love of my life for 48 years, and she always will be, and I miss her with every breath I take.
Well, it’s 10 minutes ’til midnight, and I’m getting this posted just barely before the calendar turns to Nov. 15. Joanna wouldn’t be surprised . . . she was always having to wait for me to get ready. Now she is waiting for me again . . . to re-join her one day, when the Lord decides it’s my time.
I remarked to Travis the other day that one of the hardest things for me is to think of places I’d like to visit . . . then the realization hits me that his mom isn’t here to go with me, so it just won’t be worth it, just no fun without her. I suppose I’ll start traveling again one of these days, but her absence will make any trip – no matter how far or near, how long or short – a lot less joyful.
Anyway, with that in mind, of just how much she and I enjoyed each other’s company, and the many wonderful trips we took tpgether – again, whether far or near, a long trip or just a day trip – I thought I’d gather a few pictures of our travels over the years and share them here. I’ve shared some of these before in other contexts, but they’re worth another look.
Enjoy!
(FYI – Clicking on the photo will open the full-size photo in a new window.)
My previous 8 blog tributes to Joanna since her passing on February 14:
9/14/21 – Pictures, pictures, pictures . . . remembering my wonderful trip with Joanna to Hong Kong, Beijing, and Macao 10 years ago this week
9/4/21 – Joanna and I were married 45 years ago today . . . Missing her and celebrating her
8/14/21 – Six months after Joanna’s passing . . . remembering her humor and all that she meant to me
7/14/21 – Five months after Joanna’s passing . . . remembering the lively soul who brought us joy
6/14/21 – Four months after Joanna’s passing . . . a few personal reflections
3/19/21 – Joanna spoke out against demeaning racial slurs and the fears they caused her as an Asian-American
2/22/21 – How Joanna and I got together . . . the beginning of our love story
2/19/21 – The painful journey that took the love of my life, Joanna . . . to the great heavenly banquet
c. 1974-75, when we were dating; I believe this was at Turner Falls in Oklahoma
c. 1974-75, visiting my parents in Marble Falls, TX
1986, Taos Pueblo, NM, Joanna & Travis
1986, Taos Pueblo, NM, Joanna & Alison
Sept. 1986, Disneyland; Joanna with Alison & Travis (and Minnie Mouse, of course)
1989, Colorado (we had lived in Denver from 1977-87)
June 1992, home of Joanna’s brother Hiu Wong & wife Lily, in Kitchener, Ontario; Joanna & me with her family
June 1992; touring the SkyDome ballpark (home of the Blue Jays) in Toronto
July 1992, Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, MI; Joanna riding the quadricycle
June 1993, with Joanna’s family at restaurant in Toronto
July 1993; the kids “traveled” to visit Mom’s office at Mobil Place in Dallas; Joanna got to show off her office to Alison & Travis, and got to show off our kids to her friends & co-workers
Sept. 2006, Sea World, San Antonio; celebrating our 30th anniversary
Sept. 2006, San Antonio; celebrating our 30th anniversary
February 2008, Atlanta, GA; we were there for the first New Baptist Covenant Celebration; here we make a visit to the World of Coca-Cola Museum
August 2008, Toronto; at restaurant with Joanna’s family
August 2008, Casa Loma, Toronto; Joanna & me, with our first grandchild, Avery Lin Clements, only 10 months old at this time
Sept. 6, 2008, Austin, TX, with family celebrating Daddy’s 95th birthday (which was Sept. 2), a little over a year after he passed away; L-R: Tom Anderson (Daddy’s cousin); Lawana Geren (daughter of Daddy’s only sibling, his sister Beulah); yours truly; my brother-in law Palmer McCown and my sister Patsy; and Joanna
July 2009, Hoover Dam, NV
July 2009, Las Vegas; married 33 years by this time, but we HAD to visit a chapel, lol
July 2009, Las Vegas; Joanna thought she’d try her hand at a slot machine
Sept. 2011, Forbidden City, Beijing
Sept. 2011, Forbidden City, Beijing
April 2012, Newark, NJ airport; waiting to board the plane to Israel with 90 friends from Wilshire Baptist Church & Temple Emanu-El in Dallas
April-May 2012, trip to Israel; Joanna in the Garden of Gethsemane (where, incidentally, she fell)
April-May 2012, Israel
April-May 2012, Israel
April-May 2012, Israel, with our friends Mike and Carolyn Hill (Carolyn passed away in September 2021 after a 5-year battle with cancer)
April-May 2012, Israel, with our friends Steve and Gail Brookshire
October 2012, Corpus Christi, TX; Joanna helping me work my Texas Baptists Committed booth at the Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meeting
April 2015, Italy
April 2015, Venice, Italy, gondola ride
April 2015, Italy, winery
April 2015, Italy, winery, wine-tasting (we were there for the experience and gamely tasted all of the wines put before us; full disclosure – neither of us can stand the taste of wine!)
April 2015, Italy
April 2015, Pisa, Italy, Joanna summoning all her strength to keep the Leaning Tower from collapsing!
April 2015, Florence, Italy, Joanna, with Michelangelo’s David in the background
April 2015, Italy
April 2015, Italy
April 2015, Italy
April 2015, Italy, Joanna with the artist whose painting she has just bought
April 2015, Rome, Italy, Joanna with a Roman centurion, standing in front of the Colosseum; she appears a little apprehensive!
April 2015, Rome, Italy, Joanna in the Colosseum (the Colosseum was the one thing in all of Italy that impressed me the most; I think Joanna’s favorite thing was the art, especially the Ufizzi Gallery in Florence)