Merry Christmas From The Ulrich Family

Sometimes it is useful to see the personal side of our colleagues. Here is our annual family Christmas letter ... we share it so you can glimpse into our family....

Thirty-five years ago, our oldest daughter Carrie began school in Santa Monica, California. Her kindergarten class was taught half in Spanish and half in English to accommodate all the students. We recall our trepidation at putting our daughter into someone else’s hands, and our hope that she would do okay in school.

Now, thirty-five years later, our youngest, Michael, has (finally!) completed his education. For thirty-five years our kids have been non-stop students, but we are a school and tuition-free family at last! But, what a wonderful and unexpected education journey! Our ancestors have a total of four college degrees in all known generations. Now, in two generations, we’ve collected fifteen college degrees: Dave (BA, PhD, honorary doctorate), Wendy (BA, MBA, MA, PhD), Carrie (BA, PsyD), Monika (BA, MA, PhD), and Michael (BA, MS, PhD) … a total of 54 years of college education! No wonder our hair is always flat: too many mortarboards! Our personal name for this accomplishment is Dr. Full House. Here we are in our regalia….

Our five dissertations are fascinating (said no one, ever). Dave studied numerical taxonomy ($20 if you know what this is; $50 if you care). Wendy studied teenage depression (good groundwork for her work with LDS missionaries … see article in December Ensign). Carrie studied LDS lesbian women; Monika studied social fatherhood among minorities in downtown Oakland; and Michael studied human capital and influence. Most families build reunions around camping or sightseeing; we prefer to listen to scintillating graduation speakers (not…although Wendy and Dave did SVU commencement talk this year) and watch hundreds of people get diplomas. One. At. A. Time. (Okay, we’re also celebrating afterwards for four days with eight adults and eight grandkids under seven at Disneyworld. Which may convince us to go back to graduation talks).

So . . . Want to join us for a Sunday or holiday dinner conversation? No you don’t. And neither do our children’s spouses, in-laws, or friends. If we invite you for a family meal, find an excuse, any excuse, to say no.

Want us to reorganize the government? Our church? An organization? A charity where we volunteer? McDonald’s? We have lots of ideas, minimal actual experience, and bad timing. (Dave recently published op ed advice for presumptive president-elect Hillary Clinton the day before she was not elected).

Want to ask us how to build something? Anything? Repair any part of a car? Do almost any form of yard work? We are clueless. Chris (Monika’s husband and the only real doctor in the group) said that he was a bit intimidated marrying into a family of PhDs until he noted that to change a light bulb takes five of us … one to change it, one to do a lit review, one to select the right methods, one to run the statistics, and one to revise and resubmit. (And to think, he can cut people open and sew them back up all by himself!)

Want to know some obscure and arcane statistic or reference? Just ask. If we don’t know, we will happily make something up and present it with enough chutzpah (and made up references) to almost sound convincing. We all write, teach, and present at least 120% of what we actually know (which is obvious to those who really listen).

What is the real impact of all this education on our real lives?

Carrie (psychology) says it is harder to move because we all own too many books and they are heavy. She has the wrenched back to prove it. She sees clients a few days a week and is busy as Primary president over the children in her church group (ward). Michael (her husband and the last student standing in the family) often cares for Savannah and Kevin who are beginning their education journey (no pressure).

Monika (sociology) says we are freaky: the percent of adults in the US with PhDs is 1.4 percent – approximately the same percentage as Muslims and Buddhists combined. She teaches online courses on social theory, gender, and disasters and for Arkansas State. She had a goal this year to run 100 times. By her birthday she had run 27 times. Sadly, her birthday was November 16. We’re all excited to see if she makes it. Chris, Monika, Aubrianna, Jacob, and Bullet (the dog and the ammo) will be moving to Albuquerque next year for Chris to begin his medical practice – another educational milestone.

Mike (business) says he is glad he finally graduated so he can now sit at the adult table for family meals. He dedicates his PhD to Melanie, who managed Maren, Norah, Sonya, Anneke, a dog, church jobs, and moving logistics in his absence. He joins the faculty at Utah State University in January, assuming his kids don’t mutiny on the five-day car ride from balmy South Carolina to the snow packed hills of Logan, Utah.

Wendy (psychology) says she never thought about a PhD until she saw that Dave could do it and realized that if he could, anyone could. She published book #6 (Let God Love You), still teaches adult Sunday School, speaks to LDS women around the country, and serves on the boards of the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists and Southern Virginia University (SVU).

Dave (business) says he could finally retire now that all the college is finally paid for. But Delta and United would go broke if he did. He continues to write books almost no one reads and wakes up most mornings from 3 to 5 am pondering the US political quagmire, following the Utah Jazz, writing columns, and returning emails (test him). He enjoys teaching High Priests because they can all nap together.

Along the way, our most important, and continuing, education has been in the tender mercies of God. We appreciate our ancestors as Wendy has done extensive genealogy, and Dave’s mom (88) continues to inspire us with her warmth and vitality. We delight in the light in the eyes of our eight grandchildren as they explore their world. For the most part, and most days, we all like each other (ask us again after Disney). We relish extended family and enduring and meaningful friendships. We sense God’s gracious and loving hand in our lives as we try to listen to His voice and to serve others.