First and foremost in my mind from our trip was my most favorite part: a visit with Grandpa Alonzo Bowman and his angel wife Alice in Packwood, Washington. The inception of our cross-country vacation came from the realization after a semester-long biographical project on Grandpa's life that there was so much more to know about this great man. He turned 90 in April. The fragility of life loomed around the corner and we knew it was time to act. ( I wished I felt that same pleasant pressure to line up our life and finances to enjoy all the people I love in our life, or at least had the resources to act upon them) In God's good grace, and it is extremely gracious and loving, we were able to plan out the extreme vacation through 10 states, over the two major rivers in this grand country, through 4 National Parks and over the continental divide with the peaceful valleys of family visits in between.
Josh found a medical conference in Seattle that allowed him to join us for time in Washington and the two most meaningful days of our whole trip. As Josh finished out his speed-learning session on basically everything a PA needs to know and I had rounded up the kids from 4 fabulous days with my best friend Kristen and clan, we went south around Mount Rainier into the peaceful retirement community of Packwood. Grandpa and Alice had agreed to let us visit with him with audio recorders, video recorders, and a whole lot of curiosity. During my 4 month ethnographic and archival research surrounding the life of Alonzo Price Bowman I had learned so much, and thirsted for more. There was a beautiful development within the family as we all turned our hearts and eyes inward on the jewels of history that were right within our family. Josh and I talked almost weekly with Grandpa for about 20 minutes, but his attention span did not go beyond that, leaving me with more inquiries on the tip of my tongue. We would research around the details he had given, then wait for another conversation on Sunday nights.
While in Packwood we had two glorious hours of stories and smiles. Grandpa sat at ease in his favorite rocker casually talking with me, looking past the iPad I held to record it all. Grandma Alice entertained the kids with tricks and coloring and interjected her humble and faithful opinions throughout Alonzo's narrative. Before arriving we had arranged to meet with them the following morning but had to be sensitive of their comfort and energy levels. As we closed our evening talks and determined to meet for breakfast at a local diner, I was gloriously happy. My love for Grandpa and Grandma Alice had increased almost as fast as the Grinch's heart.As we phoned Grandpa on our way to the hotel to tell him the breakfast joint didn't open until much later than we had decided upon for breakfast, he declined from meeting with us the next morning at all. I was heartsick. Even as the kids (especially Danny) were SOOO excited that there were elk in the fields surrounding our hotel room, I felt so cheated. We were spending the night in a hotel so we could see Grandpa the next morning and that was not going to happen. We went to bed that night, together, looking forward to breakfast alone the next morning.
Josh is the early riser in the family and had gone for an early run as he awoke (our hotel strategy for not waking the rest of us up quite yet, he goes to the workout room) in the quiet misty mountain streets of Packwood. He, as I, was praying that we would find a way to meet with Grandpa one more time before we left and felt the impression that he might see him on the roads. So Josh turned his run around toward the hotel, and with a small miracle, ran right into Grandpa Alonzo as he was turning out of our hotel parking lot. Grandpa had not seen us in the breakfast area (seems that these too men have an inherited trait of waking early) and thought to move on.
I awoke to Josh's jubilant voice opening our hotel room door and ushering Grandpa in. No one was upset to be awakened to the soft and sweet voice of Grandpa Alonzo's polite excuses. He spent an hour with us, having brought a special momento from his war days to share with us: a hand carved wooden shoe with his infantry symbol (the Cross of Lorraine) and the names and dates of every city he fought through during his 18 months in World War II. I was giddy. A bit bleary eyed, but giddy.
Just as we arrived back home in Indiana after another 3 weeks on the road, we heard from Mom that Grandpa was rapidly loosing weight. Having a medical provider as a husband, we both knew what rapid weight loss meant after relatively good health. Grandpa is now on hospice, back in Packwood after asking to have "no more pokes' from the good staff of Providence hospital in Olympia.
With grace and an open heart we thank God for letting us be with Grandpa Alonzo this summer. And with some grace and agency, we hope to be with him, and many other revered family members who have gone on to their heavenly home, once our journey on earth is complete. Family is everything.
