Dear friends and family,
Merry Christmas! We have all sorts of big news from 2023! Esther’s boyfriend John Ben Berry proposed to her over the 2022 Christmas break. Mike, the four youngest kids and I spent New Year’s in Albuquerque and decided to move back. We bought a beautiful house that was once a bed and breakfast.
Mike, Xenia, and I flew to California in May to see Esther and John Ben graduate with their bachelor’s degrees. In June, we had the biggest wedding ever for them and saw many friends and family from across the country. Mike and I can’t wait to be grandparents. Our first grandbaby is due in April. After the wedding, I sent Basil, Jonah, Xenia, and Justin to a church camp in Oklahoma. They came home to our Albuquerque house. We took a short vacation to Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands. I’m thankful every day that we live here again.
Mike still works from home for the same tech company which is out in California. He may fly out there for the first time since 2020 next year.
I teach geometry, pre-calculus/trigonometry, and calculus at the kids’ new private school in Albuquerque. I danced Thrill the World in October and have enjoyed meeting up with my Albuquerque friends. You can read our latest doings at syrasscribbles.com and can expect Syra’s Scribbles V to come out by next Christmas.
Esther and John Ben Berry are settled into their home in Steubenville, Ohio where they take graduate classes at Franciscan University. They also teach at a small private middle school for girls. They graduated from Thomas Aquinas College in May with their bachelor’s degrees a few weeks before their wedding. Their first baby is due in April. I’ve already bought my grandma T-shirt and made plans to fly out this spring. They will be here for Christmas and again next summer.
Sophia moved around in 2023, and we are thrilled that she has decided to move to Albuquerque right before Thanksgiving. She will be living with Mike’s mom and is pursuing her goal of becoming a full-time nanny.
Basil (18) is a senior in high school. He plans on attending Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida next fall.
Jonah (14) is a high schooler. He’s taller than his mother.
Xenia (12) is a seventh-grade middle schooler. She was the most unhappy with the move and took up Esther’s invitation to move to Ohio and live with them. She attends the all-girl middle school that Esther and John Ben teach at. Sometimes it’s good to have choices.
Justin (10) is in fifth grade. He misses his friends in Fort Worth but is making new ones. He loves our new yard, roasting marshmallows around the campfire in our courtyard, and making things out of cardboard moving boxes.
Sincerely, Syra
Dear Friends and Family,
This has been a wonderful year, full of blessings both expected and unexpected. Shortly before last Christmas, my boyfriend John Ben Berry asked me to marry him on the steps of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Fort Worth, and I accepted. The two of us graduated from Thomas Aquinas College in May and were married just three weeks afterwards. I was absolutely overwhelmed by the love, generosity, and joy we received at our wedding, especially from friends and family members who traveled a long way to celebrate us together. We honeymooned in Rome after the wedding, with an unexpected but welcome day-long layover in New York City on our way out!
Our honeymoon was absolutely magical. When we returned to the States, we began renting a little yellow house in Steubenville, Ohio and started graduate studies at Franciscan University. In October my little sister Xenia moved in with us for the semester. She is smart, helpful, and a delight to be around. In our spare time, the three of us have been learning foil packet cooking and watching through the Harry Potter movies. The last, but perhaps most exciting news from this year is that we have another Berry on the way—set to arrive in early April! Thank you so much for all your prayers and love.
God bless,
Esther Berry (with John Ben Berry and Little Berry)
Dear Friends and Family,
This year has proven to be exceptionally fulfilling. I participated in the Thomas Aquinas summer program and attended Camp St Raphael and the Antiochian village. In the fall, I toured two colleges and received acceptance in November. My new school offers unique freedoms and privileges, unlike St. Peters. Progressing steadily on my senior thesis about alien life and finding calculus to be a breeze, I eagerly anticipate becoming a camp counselor next summer and a college freshman at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in the fall. Despite the dryness, our move has been great. I’ve enjoyed playing new games and look forward to working hard for a VR headset this Christmas.
Updates on my siblings: Esther and her husband are thriving in Ohio, Sophia is now in Washington, Jonah is becoming more social, and I’m proud of his growth. Xenia is spending the semester with Esther and John Ben, while Justin is having a blast building cardboard forts and watching lots of TV.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love, Basil
Dear friends and family,
This year has been a hard one, I have moved back to New Mexico and joined a new school. The main part about it that is hard is the new school Axiom. But on the bright side, I get to spend more time with my friends from here and I am looking forward to driving this March. But enough about me.
My oldest sister Esther and her newlywed husband John Ben have moved to Ohio for John Ben’s PhD program in theology. They have also gotten pregnant and are expecting their child in the spring.
My second oldest sister Sophia is going to move to Albuquerque soon.
My older brother and the adult and only senior of Axiom, Basil Antony Ruehle, has a mouthful of a title. He also has moved here with us for his senior year which afterwards he plans to go to Embry Riddle for a degree in aerospace engineering which from what I gather has something to do with mining rocks and transporting them……… “IN SPACE!!”
My younger sister Xenia seems to be doing fine. My p arents gave her a phone early. I almost forgot she moved in with Esther and John Ben, anyway that’s all I can gather from her. b
My younger brother Justin is just happy and fun even though he really misses Texas. We normally get along fine except for the thing called the age gap.
With love, Jonah
Ladybird Beetles and Gentlebugs….
As you already have read lots of my siblings’ and mom’s letter, then you know that since I didn’t like Axiom very much compared to home, I flew away like a bird to Ohio. I love the school here. Esther is very excited to have a family of her own. So is John Ben. They get along perfectly, like bagels and cream cheese. Mom is ecstatic about becoming a grandma and Dad is equally as happy even if he doesn’t dance around in an “I’m a Grandma!” shirt. Dad is becoming paranoid of the next world war, and my teenage years. Hmm, I think those actually might be connected! I am super excited to see Sophia. She dyed her hair, and it looks so cool. Basil and I finished a few video games before I left, and I am always glad that I have a big brother. Jonah and I have been getting along better, probably based on the fact that we are a thousand miles away from each other. Justin and I usually get along fine if he is not taking like an eighty-year-old. I hope that I get a laptop and stuff for Christmas so I can do school stuff for once and keep in close touch with my friends back home in Fort Worth. I don’t like writing these, I find it vexatious.
Auf Wiedersehen!
Mine cordially, Xenia
Dear Friends and Family,
Hi, my name is Justin G. Ruehle. I am ten years old. I have six siblings, Jonah, Basil, Xenia, Sophia, Esther, and now John Ben. This summer we did a lot of fun things. At the end of the school year, my parents told us that we were going to move to New Mexico. My sister Eather was going to get married to John Ben Berry (they had gotten engaged on Christmas day). In the reception instead of the father-daughter dance, it was the brother-sister dance (I danced with Esther!!) and afterwards I played with my friend Becket. Then for quite a while we just went to the pool and played with each other and our friends. When it was time to go to Camp St. Raphael we started packing quickly. I noticed that as soon as we left, the house was empty. At camp, we did angle ball, bumping, nine-square, swimming, and crafts. When we got back to Ft. Worth we stayed at the Bryan’s house for a few days, then we went to the Bryan’s church. The next day we were heading for the airport. When we arrived, we had to stay there for a long time. Since I fell asleep, I do not remember the flight. After some weeks we went to Carlsbad Cavern. I’m going to a new school called Axiom. Its goals are to make sure that we are kind and loving. My teacher is Mrs. Forbes. I like the school, but I do miss Fort Worth. For Thanksgiving, we are going to stay home with all our family. This Christmas we are going to have a lot of fun. It might snow, and we are going to spend a wonderful Christmas with all our family.
Esther got married to John Ben Berry and is now pregnant! Sophia is going to move to Albuquerque. Basil is going to go to a college called Embry Riddle. Jonah is now in high school and is starting to get good grades. Xenia is at a new school in Ohio because she wasn’t happy in Axiom.
Yours Truly, Justin
Syra's Scribbles 