What a Treasure
The UPS fellow dropped off a great delivery on Saturday. It was from my brother Michael’s daughter, Laura, and her husband, Jake.
Michael had taken up Dad’s love of all things wood, complete with the sawmill on the farm. With the loss of Michael in November, 2018, the sawmill site became silent and perhaps not remain as such. On a visit since that time Laura and Jake had been back at the farm and revisited some of Michael’s haunts on the farm place. Picking up bits and pieces around the sawmill, Laura and Jake began hatching a plan.
I grew up on the farm that Michael and JoAnn had made their home for 45 years. They knew that I would always refer to that as still my home, as from the age of five on this was “My home.” Michael and JoAnn allowed me that liberty. Laura and Jake allowed me to have a piece of “My home” complete with all the character that Michael and the sawmill had created. Looking at the clock I can almost hear and smell the saw blade cut through this piece of Black Walnut leaving the markings for the life of what had been deemed discarded. Not so! This was and will always be special to me.
This is why the trip to Mankato was essential to Dennis yesterday. A shelf was in his wheel house for Michael’s clock to sit upon. He needed hardware brackets for a board he had found in our basement. I stayed out of the picture in total in regard to his staining of the wood to the point that he thought it was ready. This morning I had a chiropractor appointment as well as visiting the grocery store. The shelf project was Dennis’ in total, complete to where the clock and the shelf would be within our home.
When I came home there was a bit of plaster on the floor and a few screws of various sizes on the kitchen counter. The project had been completed. Dennis admitted he was wore out. My poor ole cowboy had worked far beyond his pay grade. Multiple marks for screws on the board and also a few unused marks on the wall. A trip to Fleet and Farm for the right screws and broken drill bit also was in his story. Dennis’ first ever solo wood project and it was the frosting on the cake.
A clock had been made with unconditional thought and love and a shelf put up out of inexperienced woodworking love for me. I have said it before, life on Stauffer is sweet. I am feeling pretty darn special. The clock and Dennis are definitely treasures.