December 2019
Dear family and friends-
It has been so long since we’ve successfully managed what my
mother always called the Epistolorum Familiarum (some years it never got
written, some years it was written but never mailed) . . . so in the spirit of
“Just get’er done,” here’s a quick update from the Wilkinses.
Tom and Sally are both reasonably well, assorted artificial
joints holding up nicely (with my knees last year we’re up to 7 between us). Sally
has kept very busy this year with new faith formation efforts at our parish. The
mill was quite busy as well, which is a mixed blessing as we continue to be
short-handed (it’s really, really hard to find new employees who stay long
enough to learn the ropes) and Tom winds up filling in too many gaps. But we’re
still in business, and as the sawmill has now lasted 211 years, that’s a
comfort. Our son-in-law Luis has joined us and, along with another younger
employee is making plans for the future, so maybe we’re not the last generation
after all. Stay tuned!
Having Luis as a part of the household as well as the mill
is bittersweet at times when we are missing Kathy, but we’re so glad he’s still
a part of our lives. He’s staying very busy, working on his degree at the local
community college while working full time, active in a motorcycle club, a
Veteran’s outreach program, and the Knights of Columbus.
Becky and her daughters, Windsor (6) and Willow (2) are
happily ensconced in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe (Waterbury Village in
Vermont) where Becky has a great network of friends and neighbors who pitch in
when single-parenting gets tricky. We don’t see nearly as much of them as we’d
like, but always enjoy the occasions when we do. Windsor is a very articulate
young lady and Windsor is working at catching up in the vocabulary department,
which is always fun for grandparents.
Aaron was married in February, he and Amanda have a lovely
house and busy careers in Charlestown, SC. We love Amanda and are excited to
watch them grow together. Amanda’s passion for health and fitness has certainly
rubbed off on Aaron and they’re both accumulating personal records in longer
and longer runs (most recently a marathon for him and a half-marathon for her
last weekend on Kiawah!).
Rachel and Steve bought a house in Hollis, just one town
over, and have taken on hosting family gatherings like Christmas, which is a
treat. Some of you will recall that Hollis is where Tom and I met in high
school, so there’s a sense of the circle coming around having grandsons who
will likely graduate there as well. James (7) and Sam (4) are great fun, both
doing well in school and crazy about Star Wars.
Isaac wins the prize for busiest 2019, as he bought a house
in Mont Vernon (just a couple of miles from us) and made it a happy home when
he married the lovely Judy, whose daughter Nova (4) also joined our family. No
sooner was *that* all accomplished than Uncle Sam’s Misguided Children whisked
him away for a year long Reserve activation – he’s celebrating Christmas in
Japan this year and will do a stint in Korea in the spring. Nana gets the
pleasure of having Sam and Nova here several days a week and doing the
preschool run, as they are in class together – a blast from the past to be
sure. (There’ve been a couple of times this year that our old van would have
come in handy).
All
in all, we are richly blessed and very grateful. We wish you and yours a holiday
season of grace and happiness and a blessed 2020.
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