A month having passed since our last trip, we hit the road for St. Joe again. The tiny bit of upside in all this is that we out-of-towners have a chance to make our visits - and somehow my mom so far has been spared the onset of awful pain, or too-quick (well actually, it is too quick anyway) deterioration. For this visit, Paul Jr. and Nedda also made the trip. Nedda had never made it to St. Joe, it was important to me that she see it at this time. My little wife keeps doing a great job with the photography, and with cooking/cleaning/etc./etc.
Our visit was just wonderful.
PJ and I enjoy our typical hassle-free travels and arrive in St. Joe about 6:15p following Hy-vee stop. Just missed Charlie/Beth family by a couple hours. G&G were napping when we arrived, clearly enjoyed the week with PA visitors. PJ put together a quite fine chicken parmesan supper, pleasant-quiet evening, all done by midnight.
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| EMG explaining original St. Joe school building to PJr. |
Our fellow-travelers – PJr and Nedda – ran into serious delays. They were scheduled for late arrival, but then their flight was delayed until 11p or so Phx time. They made good time thereafter but still didn’t get to the Burr Oak until 8a local time. (Americinn and Brookstone: both sold out.) It’s good to be young and strong.
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| EMG using St. Joe history book to add some details for benefit of PJr/Nedda . . . |
Saturday 13 June
PJ up at 8a or so - coffee, cinnamon rolls! We chattered and chattered about various. Grandma and PJ make rhubarb pie. (Throwback to an occasional kitchen task from my youth - I cut the rhubarb – fabulous quality stuff courtesy Dick Erpelding.)
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Nedda with Grandma . . .
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PJr & Nedda arrive by 11a with about 24 hours or so available before heading back. Grandpa did a really nice job of giving them a St. Joe history overview – including quite-enoyable discussion of boarding school anecdotes They were great listeners; Grandma chimed in helpfully as she does; PJ and I even heard a few new things; this session actually was very nice, memorable. Then had late dinner – with that rhubarb pie, which was a winner.
Next – a delightful, lengthy road trip; fun for all, but with underlying purpose of wanting to show Nedda around on her first visit.
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| Caroline's apartment in Algona (PJr, PJ, Grandma, Carline, me, EMG) |
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| These three old friends had so many laughs talking in hallway as we prepared to head to next stop on our road trip . . . |
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| One more time . . . |
------------Stop #2: Irene Bormann house. But we didn’t stop in. Just wanted to show Grandma’s home place.
------------Next: took gravel roads to our farm home from there, including circling the section such that we arrive from the south. (Also swung past Kohlhaas/Bormann sites, and the Spring Valley mansions).
------------Next: took gravel roads to our farm home from there, including circling the section such that we arrive from the south. (Also swung past Kohlhaas/Bormann sites, and the Spring Valley mansions).
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| Travelin' group pose in shed, in front of corn shellers and whatnot. |
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| Explaining the "home place" to Nedda on a lovely late afternoon. |
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| With my parents in the "boys room" upstairs . . . identifying a few things worthy of taking over to the "new" house in St. Joe . . . |
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| Grandma . . . watching, reflecting . . . |
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| *sigh* |
------------Stop #3: farm where we all grew up. Deterioration of the house is accelerating. I’m ready to get out of the house fairly quickly this time but Grandma is visibly lingering room to room, she and Grandpa are looking at stuff, this makes me sad. They decide to haul back to St. Joe a cardboard box with some of Mary’s stuff. Then we walk around the yard a bit. Late afternoon/early evening – the sun is out for pretty much the first time since we arrived in St. Joe and washes the old, past-its-prime place with that yellow glow – just gorgeous. We stand around in the yard; some picture-taking; some talking; some silence; evocative-ness factor is strong. Grandma was quietly taking all this in – PJ standing with Grandma off by the shed while Grandma looks over the scene and watches the rest of us wander around the yard and buildings and point and talk, and talk, about this and that – she tells PJ about how very sad she is that she won’t get to see this kind of thing anymore. Ach.
-------------Drive toward St. Joe; swing south at Jim Butler corner and look around Ray Gales property (stop #4). The sun is still hanging in the west with that yellow-ish light . . .
-------------Drive toward St. Joe; swing south at Jim Butler corner and look around Ray Gales property (stop #4). The sun is still hanging in the west with that yellow-ish light . . .
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| With Daryl and Kathy Baker at St. Joe cemetery |
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| Visiting grave of Irvin Bormann on a glorious summer evening (St. Joe cemetery) |
-------------Stop #6: go to Livermore for church supper - $5 for burger, baked beans, potato salad, dessert ($10 to upgrade to steak sandwich). Is this really a fund raiser? Pleasant chats with various – luminaries such as Spud, Ken E., Tom Berte, Darold Hofer, Leo Bormann, Leo's Irene; Eugene Mertz was playing bingo so we didn't get to say hi to him until his usual beverage duty at Livermore breakfast the following morning.
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| Livermore parish supper - best deal around (including custom dollar coozies). |
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| St. Joe and family history discussions . . . continued into the evening. |
Sunday 14 June
All attend 10a Mass followed by customary yakking in church. Then to Livermore Legion hall for pancake breakfast. Back to St. Joe house; eventually (but after full demo of downstairs exercise equipment) PJr and Nedda head to MN to visit Nick/Maeve/Beau before airport. Back in St. Joe: afternoon naps!
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| Reviewing Irvin Bormann information with his sister (PJr & Nedda heading to Cassino within the month) |
At night: baby shower for Anna Bormann Olson at Mark & Sue’s place – a very nice event indeed, we were there a few hours. Enjoyed catching up with those folks. Back at St. Joe - watched second half of NBA finals game with Grandpa. Followed by more chatting ‘til our typical midnight wrap-up.
Monday 15 June
Hospice nurse stops by in the morning. PJ had bought groceries for spaghetti/meatballs for Sa or Su supper so makes these up for M dinner instead. Grandma left for card club at 1:30p, which gave us a little time to speak with Grandpa before heading to the airport around 2p
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| Our group just after breakfast at Livermore Legion hall (in front of Irvin Bormann's flag) |
In sum:
Very different trip than the prior month, lucky to have two entirely-different-but-equally-fine experiences. This was small group, relaxed, G&G both did great. Grandma didn’t seem a whit different than five weeks ago, except we had the sense that she is more strongly feeling the clock ticking. It’s just hard to believe she’s that ill, but there it is. When we say goodbye we don’t really feel like it might be the last time we see her in such (relatively) good shape, as we will want to return probably late July or thereabouts depending on how things are going.
