Merry Christmas and Happy New Hippie Year

From Lans and Cheryle, 2016

With two rounds of hip surgery, right in August, left in December, I am tempted to call this, my 66,^th the Year of the Raised Toilet Seat, or Year of the Extended Reach Grabber, or Year of the Sock Aid—three of many challenges that came with the extraordinary blessing of successful operations, enabling me to hope that I can walk without pain for the first time in 16 years. It has also been an amazing year in other ways, with the births of two new grandchildren, and really marvelous travel, publication, and presentations, both here and abroad. As James Taylor said, “Never Die Young,” as of course at least two of our dearest friends did (Brian and George, and more recently Bobby Green). I hope all of you have an equally marvelous 2017, and find shelter from the fallout of political disaster that looks more threatening with each passing day. Let Love prevail, and rain down on You.

January: Published my edition of the Joseph Campbell Collected Works, Romance of the Grail: The Magic and Mystery of Arthurian Myth

Published my first novel, Communion Shades, the first of a tetralogy called Voices From the Well.

March 4-5: “Jung’s Myth of Analysis” for the “Snakes and Dragons” conference at the C.G. Jung Institute in New York, sponsored by ARAS.

April 13: My fourth grandchild, Charles Maximilian Smith, born.

June 1^st-4^th: Cheryle at STA in Chicago for membership application and presentation.

June 24^th-26^th: “Gynetypes and the Goddess” for the Erich Neumann conference at Pacifica.

July 6^th-8^th: “The Romance of the Grail,” three days of lectures at the C.G. Jung Institute in Küsnacht. Cheryle representing the Alumni Association at Graduation.

July 11^th-14^th: “Mythology of Fish” in Circeo San Felice, Italy, at the amazing home of Alessandra Montezemolo.

August 4^th: Right hip replacement surgery, Keck Hospital of USC, Dr. Daniel Oakes

September: Cheryle’s presentation, “Diabetes and the Soul,” at the LA Jung Institute.

November 18^th-19^th: “Romance of the Grail” presentation at the Jung Society in Seattle

December 5^th: Left hip surgery replacement with Dr. Oakes

December 5^th: Cheryle’s first granddaughter born: Emma Jo Murphy.