John Hattaway

Erin, codename: CAMPER, and I spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Many Farms, AZ. This is in the middle, or to one side, or somewhere, on the Navajo Nation Reservation. Yay! My mom and dad are down there on their third and final cycle as missionaries serving, driving a couple of elders (e.g. 19 to 21 year old male missionaries for the LDS church) to various places as their truck broke, or more specifically the frame on their truck broke. The outcome is that since we have codename: CAMPER and we realize that we are moving to the east coast in sub-three weeks, and since my parents have not had a lot of opportunities to see the baby in part because I am a full-time student, we decided to go down and dedicate a few days to letting them hold and talk to and get to know codename: CAMPER before we left. Now we are planning a trip back out this way so that CAMPER, slightly older, and during the summer, can spend more time with grandpa and grandpa, and so that Erin and I can, maybe, convince a couple we met yesterday to let us come down and exercise some of their horses.

The holiday was actually pretty nice. We drove down Wednesday. Started before noon, I think, and got there close to seven in the evening. I’d printed out the instructions on getting to Many Farms, AZ, but only needed them from about Blanding, UT down onto the reservation. Erin road co-pilot and CAMPER road in the back seat in his car seat and slept and fussed and ate. We did stop in Green River, UT (major industry, farming watermelon) so he could eat, and we stopped in Blanding, UT (Base Camp to Adventure, I think is what the signs claimed) so he could be held and walked around for a few minutes. We also stopped (whilst in Blanding) at a grocery store because I started the trip with a cold and a cough and the combination was enough that we needed some cough drops.

We ended up staying in Chinle, AZ at the Holiday Inn. Outside of that hotel being off the beaten track and two miles off the main road, but near a national recreational area (essentially a big canyon that we did not see). The hotel was comfortable. Erin reserved us a room with a king sized bed, and CAMPER, for the first time, ended up sleeping in between us (possibly a precursor to the trip east in a few weeks) the second night which, in turn, allowed us to sleep a few more hours than we were able to the night before.

However, that is getting a little ahead of myself.

Thanksgiving was spent with my mom and dad. Mom made all of the fixing for a Thanksgiving meal. It was very good. We had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatos. Something with pecans on the top that I didn’t even bother to try (I am allergic to pecans). The meal tasted wonderful given that it was Thanksgiving and I am not super hip on the ol’ holiday celebration thing. Granted, CAMPER is making me want to experience aspects of the holidays through new eyes and see if changes anything, but the GREAT TURKEY and the old git Santa are still these entities, along with THE GREAT PUMPKIN and other fictional characters (that does not include St. Patrick‘s favorite creation, the leprechaun) that I roll my eyes at, bah-humbug it, and then try very hard not to share my negative view of the celebrations of this country, my family, or even the world.

Moving on.

After we had dinner and while CAMPER was being held and talked to by his grandparents, which was absolutely awesome and at some point in the near future I am sure that Erin will put pictures up at codename: CAMPER-dot-com for those who have an account and bother to log in and see the pictures. It was fun to watch my parents and this little baby bond and to watch as CAMPER spit up on them and they took it in stride. We have learned that even though I love the little guy, I am not a fan of spit-up and become rather agitated when he gets around all of the five-hundred-quadzillion defenses I’ve put up to block the spit-up from actually hitting me and then having it hit me. Not a lot of fun; however, mom and dad took it completely in stride, smiled at him, when he squawked they encouraged his crying, which is what Erin and I do most of the time, and held him into sleep and at the end of the day were happy we came and sad we had to leave.

Admittedly, I think it was an amazing visit and we were sad to have to leave. However, as a student who is completing his coursework in three weeks, with about two weeks to complete the bulk of most of my assignments, not the least of which is a draft of a play, and a eight to twelve page paper for different classes and with different focuses. The outcome of all of this is that we didn’t get to spend as much time as we wanted because I have to study and write and go to school.

We will be back (though not to the reservation, or at least not that reservation as my parents live near the Ute reservation and as a result, when we come back, are more likely to go to that one that, say, the Navajo… though, after meeting some of my parents friends and knowing they live in Farmington, NM, and that one of the main routes to Farmington crosses the Navajo reservation, I think I should stop this argument…).

All-in-all, I think the visit was a very good one and was enjoyed by all.

Real Heroes Fly