Almost 50 Years and Counting
The Iron Curtain fell while Marc was planning
his third year of high school in Germany. The first evening in Germany
he called to say that his host family was not available so he was staying
with his 20-year sponsor and her 16-year old sister while their parents
were on vacation. While Denvy was on the phone with Marc two young men
from the same German village where Marc was came to the door and asked
for a room in the B&B. Small world!
During
the spring of Marc's term in Germany, Denvy, Darron and a classmate and
friend of 
Marc
visited Marc in Germany. The trip coincided with the first meeting of
Darron's biological mother, Joan, at a McDonalds. Gail and Becky countered their
absence in Germany with a trip to Hawaii.
During
the same year, a German high school student, lived with Denvy and Gail
in Trapper Creek. The lifestyle was very different for Sabina and she
struggled with some of the missing accommodations. She traveled with the
family to Glacier National Park where Gail lounged in the meadow and North
Dakota for a family reunion just before she returned home to Germany.
So many things are new and unique when one
is adventuring into an new
lifestyle and community. After fourteen years, the annual cycle was stabilizing.
Only the major bazaars and fairs were visited throughout the year. The
bulk food grocery business was flowing smoothly. A new dog entered the
family: Joni, a sheltie. Blackie, the large, scruffy Newfoundland/Saint
Bernard mixture was showing signs of his 14 years of age, but continued
to impersonate a black bear for tourists but serve as gentle mother to
even a clutch of baby chicks when the mother hen was killed.
There
were no new organizations to start and most of the older events were moving
forward with new leadership. Gail was training EMT's and ETT's in the
area. Denvy had run for the office of borough assemblymen and lost to
the former, well-liked, borough mayor. Becky was excelling in basketball,
volleyball and the hurdles. Her eyes also turned to boys and her cat that
cuddled with Joni.