Photos from cousin Will

>

From cousin Willy

One very clear memory I have, and I'm sure you remember this (if not, then Tony will for sure) took place during Ariel's wedding dinner. I was talking with Mario and we were interrupted by Lev breathlessly asking us if we knew what a 'portmanteau word' was. I think all he needed was the furrowed brow and he was off to ask Elizabeth - I don't think I even got a chance to say 'no'. Mario and I halted our chat and watched him go to every diner at our table, asking them the same question, his patience dwindling with each quizzical look he received. I could see him keeping some sort of score on his fingers and when I saw Tony shoot him 'told ya so' smirks, I realized Lev wasn't asking the definition for his own edification, he was keeping a tally of who in his family knew it. He was pretty exasperated by the time he conceded to Tony that not everyone there knew that, as Mario's smartphone told us, Portmanteau words are two words put together put together to make a new one. It was great to see how worked up he got over the issue, repeating, "How do you NOT KNOW what a Portmanteau word is!?!? Come ON!"  

birthdays

Today would be Lev's sixteenth birthday. I was really looking forward to teaching him to drive. I have nice memories of letting Jaal drive me to school every morning, and was hoping to do so with Lev.

Lev had lots of great birthdays over the years. Since he was a summer birthday it was often hard to get together with his friends. On his fourteenth he got together with a few friends- David, Kalyn, Grady, Brandon and they ate home made pizza and a cookie cake and went to a game place.

I remember on his eighth birthday we were living in Sybil's house in Monteverde. It was one of the few homes with a bathtub. Lev had Trevor and Eduardo over and they played in the bathtub for hours.

We were often visiting family and celebrated his birthday with Zeb's birthday.
Last year, we were going to be home, in between our camping trip to Canada and his trip to visit Zay.

Birthday foods- crepes for breakfast, home made pizza, pie or ice cream and a cookie cake.

a memory from his step Grandma Linda

Our Costa Rica vacations were a great time to get to know you all and spend quality time with Jaal and Lev. One time when you all went horseback riding (I think?), Lev and I were left alone at the beach for a bit. I shared with him how I was afraid of the waves and he told me I just have to dive right in and meet them head on . He was also my translator for restaurants and shops during this visit and both he and I took great delight in his greater knowledge and generous sharing of his language skills. (This was one of our first visits there when we went to the Pacific coast so he must have been 8?)

 

Our last visit there to the Caribbean coast my memory is the gift you guys gave Ted of the Spanish version of Monopoly, "Monopolio". We all played with quite intense competition going on for a long game (as Monopoly often is). Several times sometime wanted to drop out but we persevered with Lev accumulating more and more property and becoming more and more obnoxiously gleeful as he came closer and closer to being the last one standing. When he finally dominated there was a total eruption of jubilance as if he had won the Super Bowl and World Cup combined. It is great to think of him being THAT happy.

 

-------

This reminds me of that New Year's eve in Playa Flamingo, where the famous Monopoly game took place. The resort we were staying in had pools, tennis courts, etc. 

The boys would get up early and play tennis with Grandpa Ted. We were there for New Year's and the hotel put on a party. At each table were about five bottles of liquor and then they had a bar that served soda and mixers. There was music, dancing, etc, but the best part for Jaal and Lev was jumping or getting thrown in the pool at midnight. 

There were several New Year's in Costa Rica where we were all partying together, with friends or family, and then jumping in the pool at midnight. It was great to be able to share those days as a family.  When they were little it was so special to stay up until midnight and get to drink soda with caffeine. 

(Our worst New Year's with Jaal was when he was two, and we were visiting Tijuana. We got the dates mixed up and slept right through it.  We were confused the next morning when there was party garbage in the streets and everything was closed.)

Rebecca

Photos from Lev's Room

As we pack, Lev's room will be one of the last. Maybe I will start on his birthday, the 19th.
Although his things are all over the house - nerf darts, shoes, school supplies and school work, books, notebooks, coats, rocks, sleeping bag, snow shoes, skis and a lock of his hair - most of his things are in his room.

Attached are some photos.

One Year Anniversary Gathering

I'm glad we had a little gathering for the one year anniversary. It seemed to honor him.
I am thinking back on some of the stories people shared, and I wanted to share snippets of them below:

Chicken Mask
Jaal was playing a game called Assassin at the high school, where people are on teams, and try to shoot each other with nerf guns, while not at school. It can go on for weeks. Jaal lasted a couple weeks, and then one of Jaal's friends offered to buy Lev a chicken mask if they would let him in the house so he could "kill" Jaal. Lev let them in at the agreed upon time, and Jaal was assassinated. He wasn't mad, as it was part of the game. Lev was thrilled, he got to turn in his brother, and got a mask. He would have done it for free.

Fireworks
Last fourth of July Jaal and Lev took off together to drive up to the Skagit Reservation in Jaal's newly restored Datsun 280z to buy fireworks. Lev got a really good deal because a friend of his was working the stand. He was so proud of his fireworks. That night, Jaal went to a friends house, and we set off our fireworks in the backyard with our neighbors. Lev had a fabulous time.

Mumbling
Lev mumbled. He was hard to understand on the phone. It got better as he got older, and he really had to learn to annunciate for Debate Club. In third grade the other non-native English speakers were confused why they couldn't understand Lev, and the teacher said it was because he was speaking Levish. He would often mumble and then get mad if we couldn't understand him.

Switzerland
He dreamed of going to Switzerland with Zay. For college, or just to go, see the largest medieval weapons museum, be in a neutral country, I'm not sure why else, but they thought it was really cool and talked about it all the time

Carving things
Lev loved to carve wood

Mustache
Lev just loved his mustache. He started to grow it at about age 6, and it slowly grew in until it was a nice little fuzzy one at age 14. He was very proud of it. I think he had one before Jaal did.
He also loved growing taller. When he outgrew someone he was so proud. I remember the day he grew taller than Tony. He was jumping around, hugging him, trying to throw him down, punching his fists in the air, totally excited.

Devil's advocate
Lev liked to hold an opposing position to any argument

Keanu Reeves
In Costa Rica, with the band, there was this game going on for a few days, trying to fit Keanu Reeves into a conversation. The game kind of died down. Lev loved that kind of silly stuff. A few days later, we were on a giant rope swing in the jungle, where you swung out like 200 feet in the air. Some people held on for dear life, others trusted the rope and harness and released their arms and stretched out when at the apex. Lev was one of the last in our group to go. When he reached the top he released his hands and legs, stretching out all fours, and screamed at the top of his lungs into the forest: Keanu Reeves
He was the clear winner of a game everyone else had forgotten about.

The Power of Levity
The last day of school in eighth grade, the Honors English teacher read a story to the class. It was his tradition to write a story each year that included each student in the class and gave them a super power that fit their personality. He said that Lev was the most complex, and he had to strongly consider what power to give him. His power appeared at climax of the story, and it was the power of Levity - to laugh loudly at inappropriate times

From Lev's friends on facebook around the one year anniversary

Melissa Wilkerson

One time Becky Higdon, Lev and I were riding bikes. We decided to go to the park by the library. Lev tried to get us girls to ride the teeter-totter, but we wouldn't since it was soaking wet. So to solve the problem Lev sat on it first, his pants soaking up all the water on the seat. When Lev stood up he shook his butt at us, exclaiming "Look at my squishy butt!"

Keith Cooper

While teaching at Moteverde Friends School my daily walk home from work down the trail that led to your back yard found Lev ready and waiting to take me down with whatever make-shift sword he could find. This frequently led to long drawn out battles which he always won.

Chrisopher black

my favorite was all the great times in digi com and how he always made people laugh.

Shannon M Finn

The time he made the worlds largest rubber band and smacked me in the face with it numerous times. Then stomped on my feet. We got on great :D

Terry Matthews

back in middle school some guy was bein a jerk to one of levs friends and lev got so mad and shoved a table with three people on it, ya know one of those big tables and later on lev tried to make nice with the guy and the guy was like im sorry im sorry, ill never do it again

Sarah Curtin

Back in middle school, he used to play pranks on Mr. Ypma and narrate everything I did with his friend. I acted annoyed but it would always make me laugh. I never really got to truly know him, but what I do know was even though he didn't know it, he was a difference maker. And he still is.

Tanner Comstock

‎"When everyone turns in the assignment, that's a good clue that you better get started on it." -Lev Mann

Lacey Fletcher

There are a lot of memories with Lev I can think of, but I do enjoy the one were he told me he sent my phone a virus and when I read the message it said AIDS I couldn't help but crack up laughing.

Derek Laird

A couple days before he passed Dave Alberto and i hung out with him. Although i don't have a whole lot of stories of him (being that him and i weren't too close) i thought that he was pretty cool. I can fondly look back on that time and smile because of him. Wish i got to know him better.

Elany Corado

In middle school me and him would always argue about who was right over every little thing. Heh. It was a lot of fun because neither of us would ever admit when we were wrong.

Tyler Christian

8th Grade- We had a "Drama" class, he was the best at the game "If you really loved me..."

From Karen Gordon

Reeling back time, I came to conjure the little boy who was my last neighbor before we bought this farm...the little boy who I used to find hanging out on my cabina hammock at any time of the morning or afternoon, the little boy who regularly visited me to drink tea next to my wood stove (especially when he smelled something baking!), the little boy who always asked  if I would give up my rocking chair "just for a little bit" so that he could sip his tea, eat a snack, and tell me a story that he'd thought about in school that day. He said rocking helped him tell the story, of course!  My memories of the many 500-colon veggie burgers we ate that year at Dona Flori's are intricately connected to Lev...95% of those burgers were eaten with Lev across the table from me.  Lev was the first person with whom I ate homemade donuts (God bless Edith on those Friday afternoons), and he dragged me over time and again (when he wasn't a self-appointed delivery service) to sample Tony's post-school afternoon snack creations, which starred papaya milkshakes.  I fondly remember gazing out my cabina windows, seeing Lev on the roof of the car, gathering the moco-fruits at our driveway's entrance and then lying down on that same warm roof, enjoying his bounty as the dappled light, or light mist,  fell down on him. 

Lev was a scowler....but do you know what?  He never scowled at me....yes, I saw him practicing scowling,  but when his brown eyes met mine of blue, they glinted and crinkled into a sweetness and playfulness that tickled an indescribable place within my heart and brain at the same time.

I truly believe that Lev was the first little boy I felt like I really knew, and truly cared about.  I remember recognizing that fact during your family's  last visit to Monteverde, when we came over for a potluck with the band.  I saw Lev talking and playing with Christopher....at 2 1/2, all he wanted was to climb up and down the stairs inside your house.  Experiencing Lev, with his peach fuzz moustache, sitting next to me at dinner and asking me earnestly how motherhood was going, made my heart melt.  He quickly said, "Nice job, because Chris is a cool little kid..."....and then he joined my little man on the stairs again, playing, goading, talking, whispering, and giggling for the next 30 minutes.  Whenever I'd get close,  Chris would panic and say "NO, mama, this is MY time with LEV, please GO" . . .I fully understood the large, pubescent, no-longer-little-boy-Lev had my little boy wrapped in a tale of fantasy and adventure that would surely spin on into Christopher's dreaming hours that night.  I remember driving home to San Luis and commenting to Fabricio how much Lev rocked my world, how Chris simply fell into and wanted to swim in the space that Lev created, and what an amazing, bright, unique being he was.  For days and weeks, Chris would ask me, "Mama, remember Lev?"

Yes, I do remember Lev.  As if he were right here, in my living room, rocking on my chair and spinning these tales just for me.

Lev and Jaal with rockets

weaponry and rockets from Aunt Sue Ellen

 
The book on weapons
Once children grow out of the “little kid” stage in which gift giving consists of storybooks, Legos and games, it gets harder to pick something that they’ll truly like.
Being the mother of a girl, with Jaal and Lev it was problematic for me as our family’s gift chooser to avoid being placed in the lame-but-well-meaning older relatives category at birthdays and holidays.
Lev, in particular, was a challenge. His early fascination with weapons was something he did not grow out of. Though I wanted to get him something he would really like, the prospect of providing encouragement and war material ran counter to appropriate gifts from a card-carrying Quaker.
I envisioned future guilt should Lev grow up to join the NRA and Republican Party.
Medieval weaponry, swords, tools of the Ninja trade and fierce video games were Lev’s familiars. Of course, one can always opt out of picking just the right gift via money, especially appreciated as youngsters begin to understand the choices that open up with hard, cold cash.
I settled on things like an online gaming subscription and i-Tunes gift cards. I tried long and unsuccessfully to find a Metallica tee-shirt he’d requested (they don’t come in kid’s sizes), but recovered with a Metallica light switch cover. I caved with the book on weapons. Lev must have been about ten years old that Christmas. The books for children on the subject were way beneath his expertise. His downstairs Wallingford bedroom was an armory and he explained with sophistication on a visit there all of the armaments he’d collected. So I bought an adult book on weapons with lots of photos, drawings, descriptions and bits of history.
One summer when the boys came out to stay with us, we arranged for them to take a class in rocketry with our friend, Leonard Good, science teacher extraordinaire, the purveyor of loud noises and bad smells. The boys loved the day with Leonard, built their rockets and shot them high into the blue summer sky. A photo of the day shows Lev with an expression of pure pleasure on his face.
The winter before Lev died, as I perused PygmyList for family gift ideas for the upcoming holiday, Lev’s list included cash. Easy. In the space for descriptions of the gift wanted, Lev noted what he wanted the cash for. He said it was for his college fund. It stopped me cold. At 14, he was becoming an adult, planning for his future. One of the last gifts we gave Lev acknowledged his turn toward manhood.
I visited his room late last summer. It was in typical teenage disarray; clothes stuffed in the corner, shelves full of books and collected stuff, posters on the wall, memorabilia from his travels, a computer center stage; his personality everywhere. And there, lying on the bed, next to his pillow where he’d left it, was the book on weapons.

Aunt Sue Ellen (Rebecca’s aunt)

Lev memories from Jeana

Memories of Lev from Jeana Kimball, a family friend since before Lev was born

Tenacity, imagination, intelligence, curious

Levy in his socks, brown from dirt, stick in hand, yelling at the top of his lungs, under the clothesline at Sylvia's house

Levy up in the Monteverde  tree house yelling at unseen enemies

Levy engrossed in his book, unaware of parents yelling to get this attention

Levy waist deep in water inside of a canoe in a storm, off Playa Hermosa, laughing amidst the danger of potential sinking from a broiling storm rolling down from the north.

Levy joining Tony in exploring Jewish roots, odd stick hut construction in Monteverde home

Levy's fouled socks greeting all visitors upon entering GoertzelMann home

Levy  ferociously maneuvering the Trooper while sitting on Tony's lap; Lucas scared out of his wits, then surprised by Lev's talent for driving

 Levy with the gall to take on his brother and brother's friend in argument,  a formidable opponent, and refusing to cede an inch, even when Lev in error .  

Levy happy to interact with adults, plenty of intellectual content to share, non-ageist

Levy at the table with John and Jeana and Tony and Rebecca, holding his own on whatever topic, and always curious

Levy and Jaal with new matching swimsuits that unfortunately trapped sand in lining.  Both laughing at irony of fancy new swimsuits acting like anchors

Lev creating universes with a thousand words from a vocabulary of somebody 10 years his senior, in lieu of answering a yes or no question

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lev with younger kids from Uncle John

From  John Goertzel, Lev's Great Uncle

 

My last clear memories of Lev are from the gathering for Ariel  and Willie's wedding.  In addition to Lev's costume- the dark suit and kind of old fashioned adult man's hat-  the image of which I will always remember, I have a vivid memory of Lev and Ari, my son Mario's son, up on the roof of the boat house next to which the rehearsal dinner and gathering were happening. They were playing around, Lev in the lead.  The roof was large and low in slope and I judged them to be relatively safe. I hoped Ari's parents wouldn't discover him before he enjoyed what seemed to be a big adventure for him.

 

On several other occasions at the wedding and before I observed Lev playing with younger children.  He seemed to really enjoy this, his behavior wasn't entirely altruistic. I think he may have liked being the leader, the older kid for once, having grown up with an older brother.   But he wasn't bossy or mean and I know my grandkids really liked him.  A number of years ago Jaal and Lev went with Sue Ellen and I and Mario and Elizabeth and kids to a vacation rental house on Lake Quinault.  Lev played willingly with his younger cousins when he and Jaal were not busy building the raft they paddled with some success in the lake by the house. In his interest and enjoyment in playing with younger kids Lev reminds me of Mario as a child, which endears Lev to me. I sense a gentleness in these boys, perhaps even the desire to give a little something to make the little guys a bit happier.

 

Uncle John

the goblet on his altar

a funny goblet
goes well with interesting things
and undersized forks

Haiku composed by Jaal and Rebecca, in honor of Lev's passion for eating and drinking with unique silverware and cups.

a memory from Amy

This was written by Amy, who is a friend of the family, living in Costa Rica. She was a teacher at the CEC, but not Lev's teacher. She was a friend to Lev. 

I remember the time that he made Rebecca an earring holder.  I commented to him on how cool and useful I thought it was.
Much to my surprise, the next Monday, Lev came in with a earring holder for me!  It was a wooden rectangular frame with wooden bars going across the center.
On these bars he had hammered many a nail that served to keep my mess of a earring collection organized and ready to to be worn with the perfect jungle fashion.

Lev will not be forgotten.

This is a video that Lev made with some classmates in 9th grade. Two of his classmates were missing, so he and his friend Annie had a large role in the production. Rebecca was videographer for most of the production, and Jaal did the editing. If you have trouble viewing it on the blog, you can search for it on you tube, with Lev Mann Tailor and the three beasts.

Outspoken

I was always impressed with the energy- and sometimes "volatility" that Lev could contribute to any gathering. Tony once expressed astonishment that our sons Orion and Sy didn't fight like cats and dogs- he thought it was universal brother behavior! But from my vantage point as a neighbor it appeared that Lev and Jaal were growing into a brotherly relationship where they could share activities and discussions without the inevitable flare ups of temper that characterized their earlier interactions. I could often hear [only] Lev's voice when he and Jaal or friends were outside playing from our place, over a hundred yards away. When we would go to spend the evening with the Mann-Goertzels our family was amused by the level of volume and energy that the dinner conversation could hit, and it was usually Lev's enthusiam raising the bar!

One of my favorite Lev moments was when he testified before a large room full of people at a public forum on water fluoridation at Burlington High School. Lev spoke so eloquently against fluoridation of the public water supply that one County commissioner remarked:  "Son- you'll make a great lawyer!".

Lev's thoughtful questions and comments to the panel of commissioners may well have been a major influence in the commissioners' eventual vote against fluoridation, so part of Lev's legacy may be pure water in Skagit County. Thanks Lev, for always speaking your heart and mind loud and clear!

The last time I was with Lev was a year ago on July 4th as he proudly set off his prized assortment of fireworks.

Memories of that day and feelings of sorrow for his family's loss came flooding over me as I heard the cacophony just  a few days ago, and I guess they always will.  Miss you Lev!

-Don Smith,  July 8, 2011

Lev was always a very caring person. He would help people, even if he didn't quite realize he was helping. One example of this would be what he did for me. In middle school school and into the beginning of Freshman year, I had some "friends." Guys and girls both who treated me terribly because they knew I wouldn't do anything about it. These so-called "Friends" even went so far as to slam me into walls and punch me, for no reason at all, whenever they had the chance. I don't know if Lev knew about this or not, but he really did help in a subtle way. Whenever we were together he always stood in-front of me and slightly to one side. After that my "friends" stopped coming around all together. When he stood the way he did, it made it impossible for anyone to take a swing at me.

I'm not sure if he realised how much he helped me. That simple act, really did change my life in a positive way. Once I stopped getting hit, I was happier. Once I was happier I realised that those people weren't friends at all. I'm still thankful, every day I can walk down a hallway with out taking a beating.

books

books

Lev loved to read. He was a really fast reader, and enjoyed fantasy books.
We would go to the used book store and he would sometimes buy 15 books, which he consumed rapidly. In the beginning of fourth grade his teacher let him read most of the day. One day, he didn't even go to class. He just stayed in the library until the teacher asked me at lunch if he was home sick. We went and found him in the library. He hadn't notice that school had started. In between books, or series, he also watch plenty of tv on the computer - Simpsons, Family Guy, etc. He and Zay would trade books when they visited once a year. He would fill his suitcase with books, and then come home with a whole new supply.

When he was nine I would still read to him often at night, but not much after then. He read all the Redwall books at that age, and I remember reading them to him. They had lots of animals, funny characters with Scottish accents. Whenever I read I wanted to do all the accents, but he would get so upset. My accent didn't sound like he imagined it and he would get frustrated and angry. I would slip back into the accent, for my own amusement, but each time he would get so mad.

Rebecca

Lev and Meat

Lev was raised a vegetarian, but it became clear at an early age that it wouldn't last long.
At age 4 or 5, while at a barbecue at my mom's house he sat by the grill, asking
Charlene what she was cooking. He said the burgers smelled good and asked if he could have one. She told him to go in and ask his mom.

We kept him away from meat for a few more years. Around 8 he started eating chicken nuggets at Trevor's house, alhough we didn't know it at the time. He liked the idea of kilng and eating his on meat. jaal and Lev both liked bows and arrows, dart guns, etc, but only Lev wanted to actually hunt. He never did hurt anything, even when a deer walked in front of his target in our back yard.

The day we realized he wasn't a vegetarian anymore was when we were at an event, maybe a music concert, and we were going to go in to town to get some food. Lev went first, with Andrea and Marino, and we were going to meet him in town later. This was in Monteverde. It was a small town, so we could always find them.

When we walked in to town, walking up the final hill, there he was, sitting at a table in the Pollo Loco (crazy chicken), eating fried chicken. He liked it.

After that, when we went out to eat he would often order meat. He hated steak, but liked hamburgers, chicken burritos, fish.

Lev really enjoyed food. It was so much fun as his parent to make food that he liked because he was so excited and grateful.

burritos, pizza, cookies, pancakes, crepes, pie, pasta, quorn patties,bagels, and fruit

He also complained relentlessly when made to eat things he didn't like, like most cooked vegetables. Often before sitting down to dinner I would tell him he could complain twice and then it had to stop, unless of course it was one of his favorite meals. Then he would be joyous.