I left the house a little before 7am, and the moon through the trees was bright and pretty. It followed me for about half an hour, then the sun came out. The drive up was beautiful, with spots of color everywhere, and some mist and clouds hovering over the fields. Because I was alone, I could think about the beauty around me.
I took a few minutes to take some pictures – of the barn, the house (inside and out). Just one last walk-through.
It was a very busy, long day but I feel like we accomplished things. It’s probably the last trip I’ll make to the farm. A few more trips for Barb and Bobbie and the boxes (which are all packed up) will be taken to the Thrifty Shopper. Barb, Bobbie, and Whitey were loading two cars when I arrived, and we also loaded mine. But when we got there, the manager explained that they don’t have warehouse space and can only take a few boxes a day. So we drove a few miles to Barb/Whitey’s house and put the leftover boxes from that trip into their garage. They only live a few minutes away so they’ll take a few every day. Byron is going to take the furniture to the Erie Mission.
We had just got back to the house when Dick (who was hunting) called Bobbie. He had shot his first deer on his Dad’s (now Byron’s) farm! Byron came down on his side by side and helped get the deer gutted and back to the house. I took a picture but — uck. Byron was super excited – the first deer shot at Buckhaven farm! I was glad to be there as part of the excitement. And very happy for Dick!
After we had finished packing everything up (including my car – a few things my kids wanted and then the rest just to drop at Good Will) Barb took over the bookkeeping part of finishing things up. Bobbie was looking at a few photos that were at the house – I think she’s taking them home for Dick to look at.
We just locked up and stepped out on the porch and it started to POUR down rain! We all ran for the cars – I was soaking wet. I just turned the heater up full blast to take the chill off. The storm pushed aside emotional goodbyes or talks about the future. We just all ran! I was behind them, and when they turned in at Bobbie’s, I honked. At that exact second Kenny Chesney’s new song ‘Knowing You’ came on and it did bring a twist to my sensitive heart. The line is ‘… it’s been good knowing you.’ I can’t think about that today. I’ll go crazy if I do. I’ll think about that tomorrow! (Scarlett O’Hara, Gone with the Wind).
The rain followed me the whole way home – sometimes fierce and sometimes a drizzle. Right before the Turnpike we got stopped in traffic, but didn’t take long to clear out. I took a photo out over the bridge and was glad I wasn’t headed toward THAT storm!
Got home, emptied and organized the car, and took a shower; looked out the window to the sun shining off the trees – then started on this post. Next: food! I stopped for gasoline for the Mazda and a milkshake for me at about 2:30pm so I’m ready to eat.
We’ve been making trips to Erie and Albion since the early 1980’s, even before Mom married John. This is a chapter of our lives that is closed. It wasn’t perfect, but it certainly WAS good, (and Mom was happy!) and I am glad to have had the experiences that we did. We’ve met wonderful people, had fun adventures, and learned a lot about life on the way. We may make trips up there again – but it won’t be the same. It will be a NEW book, a new chapter. So to all of you, it, indeed, was ‘good knowing you’!
Vacations!
Memory book – October 5th: Do you have any special memories about raking and burning leaves, or mowing the lawn? “When late October and early November came each year we would rake the pine needles that fell from our big white pine tree. I really had fun doing that. We would burn them & I loved the “Smoke Smell”. Our lawn mower was heavy & hard to push. Uncle Jim steered and Hazel & I pulled it like a team of horses 🙂 ”
On this day in 1774 the first display of the world ‘Liberty’ on a flag was raised in MA against British Rule. In 1854 Florence Nightingale and 38 nurses were sent to the Crimean War, and in 1975 Elton John got a star in Hollywood. Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) was born in 1956.
TOMORROW October 22 is:
I’m so glad to be home, and done with the work part of my day, and all the driving. I feel blessed and humbled as I reflect on 4 decades of memories. God bless!
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