EMMA, HOBEN, GENE KRUPA AND LIFE

The nice part of being near my grandchildren here in St. Louis is watching them mature and grow, even taller than me.

Emma (15) is into creative writing, going beyond the current fad of vampires, though intrigued with them. She composes her own melodies and lyrics on the electronic keyboard and sometimes enjoys the Opera with me. She is hooked on horseback riding and would rather deal with horses than human beings. She cherishes her privacy and offers her mother and me fashion tips.

Hoben (14) is outgoing and versatile in his interests. Always inquisitive, as a youngster he used scraps of paper, material, whatever he could get his hands on to create his own structures. Some ideas worked. Some did not, much to his frustration. A trait which he has almost overcome. He is an accomplished chess player, avid reader, and athletically into baseball and soccer.

Every once in a while, I will attend a school event with them. Last week, I went with Hoben to Grandparents,Grand Friends Day at his school. Part of the program included musical selections by the school's Orchestra and Jazz Band. The drummer in the Band, was a tenth grade student, Chris Gatewood who had all ages taping their feet to his beat, and who reminded me of an up and coming Gene Krupa. I know there was a lot of controversy about Krupa who died in 1973, but there was no denying his talent with the drums..

As I enjoyed Chris Gatewood's performance, so reminiscent of Krupa's, I looked across the table at Hoben, thought of Emma and wondered, where will life take both of them?