Hot and hectic with homecomings: that best describes July 2012 for the Henkels.
Mark and Hilde spent many hours weeding and watering in the gardens and fruit beds, but the incredible heat and drought combined to limit and then dry out the lawns, flowers, and trees. While careful watering helped the hardy peach tree produce its first three small peaches, the summer raspberries and blueberries both had meager yields. The sugar maples, after no sap run in spring, lost many leaves mid-month and their health for the future is in doubt. Seeing the neighbors’ crops wither and water holes dry up has been very painful.
On the family front, the long-awaited return of Jim and then Kayme and Rhiannon meant that Mark and Hilde very happy and pretty busy also. On the first weekend of the month, they drove down to Sussex in two cars (one is Jim’s Rav 4), both stuffed with furniture, food, tools and other items. Mark’s fitness, foresight and flexibility were very helpful when the incorrect key (fault of the realty!) made the only access thru a basement window. There was no time to waste since the washer and dryer arrived for installation even before Rachel bought Jim from the airport. Meantime, John and Evie arrived from Chicago bringing a futon, additional muscles and lunch. It was a wonderful reunion as Jim looked over his new home. Then work began on setting up the futon, the Henkel bed for Rhi and the wireless server. The really major project the first weekend was to remove the bile-yellow kitchen sink and get a nice one installed. Mark and Jim did a great job and enjoyed working together, too!
For the next two weeks, Jim camped in the house, painted Rhi's new room and attended his special class in the history of the Old Testament. Kayme and Rhi stayed in Maryland to finish Kayme’s last opera commitment, supported by her parents first and then sister Rachel. Little Rhiannon really missed her daddy during that time, despite skyping every night. Finally Kayme and Rachel packed up Rhiannon and a blueberry bush and drove nearly 1000 miles to arrive in Sussex. The next day Mark and Hilde went down to help with unpacking as the rest of their belongings arrived. Everything came in good shape, including the grand piano! Naturally, it was very hot while all this was going on so this was definitely sweat equity!
Mark had some good news as the next trial on his schedule was postponed, allowing him to really get going on prep for the next two coming up. He has just been very busy with motions, depositions and briefs: in fact he ended the month in Platteville on another hot day, doing a full day farm visit with many experts coming and going.
During the July county board meeting, Hilde was recognized by both the county chairman and the executive director of Aging and Disability Resource Center of Central Wisconsin for her leadership in the formation and expansion of the agency. It is hard to step aside, but already the executive committee is ramping up in busy-ness for budget work and nobody can do everything that interests them.
Turning “over 60” did not seem to have any effect on Hilde’s energy, just the heat, heat and heat. However, with all the family activities, gardening (she canned first pickles and froze first batch of beans plus did lots of zucchini) and meetings, she still found time for one July tradition: a lunch with Irene! Usually they celebrate between their birthdays, but this year is was a little late, still sweet. “Make new friends, but keep the old---one is silver and the other gold!” It really is precious to have a Christian friend for more than 30 years and a joy to see her on her feet again.
The posting of this blog was delayed by the total failure of the server at the Platteville hotel, but better late than never
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| JIm Kayme & Rhi in new house |
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| Mark and Jim replace the sink |
