Sacred Ground

Last month the family got in the 4Runner and made the drive to Lapwai, ID. It was time to go see my Granny and Papa who live on the reservation on 40 acre piece of land. This land is sacred in many ways. To me it was the place of all my best childhood memories. A big piece of private land, away from the city that's full of possible adventures. I used to climb the hill behind the house with my brothers and feel like we had just reached the summit of Mt. Everest. Interestingly enough that hill seems quite a bit smaller now, but the facade and memories are unchanged. I also remember taking hikes through the land and coming back to the house hours later with a bounty of spearmint which we later used to make tea. I've caught plenty of trout and crayfish over the years from the creek that splits the plot in half. This creek was also the locale of many dams made of rock that my brothers and I labored over for hours at a time. Swimming holes were also abundant on this creek and we made the most of them during the hot, dry summers.

The wildlife on the land was excellent. Granny and Papa always had cats, dogs, horses, pigs, and cows. Beyond that Granny would hatch quail and release them on the land; she is such a bird fanatic that the place reminds me of a bird sanctuary the more I think of it. Beyond the domestic animals there were plenty of other creatures running about. I've seen deer, duck, owls, eagles, hawks, mink, cranes and many others. It was truly a vast land full of adventure for me and my brothers.

Our trip last month was more to see and visit with family. Now that my girls are growing so fast I felt it was a good idea to make the trip. My mother also met us there and we all had a good time just chatting, singing and enjoying fresh veggies from Granny's garden. We were able to hang out and look at old photos as well as get out and stomp through the sticks a bit. I took Izzy for a few rides on the 4Wheeler and Papa helped keep her entertained with his motorized chair . . "she drove all by herself".

On Saturday evening we had a great BBQ where several family members and friends showed up. Several of these people I've known most of my life and they are indeed "fruit of the earth" people.

All and all a great visit and I can't wait to go back. Sacred ground and sacred memories that I hope to share more of with my wife and children.

County Fair

A county fair is one of the best pieces of summer entertainment available to a family. Lucky for us the Stocktons invited us to the Clackamas County Fair in Canby a couple of months ago, and we had a blast. Beyond the incredible people watching experience there are other great attractions that we all enjoyed.

Animals! Yep, Stockton promised to show us a vast array of animals including a rabbit that was as big as my dog. He didn't disappoint as sure enough there were a ton of amazing animals and of course a few rabbits that would give Kaya a run for her money in a wrestling match . .wow. Izzy loved the pigs, llamas and even the chickens. I had now idea there were so many different kinds of chickens, and who knew they could get so big!

Once we finished strolling around the different animal pens we had an ole' fashioned county fair lunch and got to listen to a guy lecture on the fine points of bbq. Yep, he had it down to a science; I had no idea there was that much to it.

We look forward to next year!