August 16, 2021

Dear Ben,

Steph, Tyler and Bowie are FINALLY here. It could have been worse. It could have been Monday instead of Sunday, or even worse than that …. not getting their negative Covid test results in the allotted 72-hrs in order to cross the border and having to get tested again. There we were, at the Torrie Reunion, waiting for the Froelichs … and there they were, on the other side of the border, waiting for results. So they missed the Reunion, but ended up being 5 hours behind us on the road home. We’re just glad they’re here. Bowie is absolutely the cutest child on the planet and she just smiled and smiled when she came in, staying close to Steph at first but was already warming up thirty minutes later. We’re looking forward to the next couple of weeks with them around. 

The Torrie Reunion was actually a lot of fun. And I say “actually” because I wasn’t anticipating it would be. It was HOT and we spent time on the lazy South Saskatchewan River on kayaks equipped with water shooters. Haha. And before we got in the kayaks we were instructed to fill ziplock bags with any snacks we wanted from a table laden with every conceivable snack you can imagine. So there we were, on the river in kayaks with a giant bag of snacks, shooting water at anyone who came near. Luckily we could take a dip if we were a sticky mess at the end. 

Uncle Wayne was excited to show off all his farm equipment. It’s been 100 years since the Torries have been farming that land and they’ve collected a lot of equipment over that time span, much of which still actually works in spite of being obsolete. Uncle Wayne told me a story where great-great-Grandpa Torrie was going to lose the farm during the Depression, and in a fit of inspiration, planted all the land into rye, and worked alone for two weeks straight, without sleep, to get the harvest in thereby saving the farm. (Apparently he took little cat naps wherever he could… but still.)

We also learned you have a second cousin, Tyson Torrie, who was reassigned to Toronto in September for his mission, originally called to Wisconsin, where he still might end up but who knows? I know it’s a huge mission in Toronto, but it’s someone to possibly anticipate seeing. 

We camped on the lawn in our big tent, which was handy because the Smiths were in charge of the big pancake breakfast Saturday morning. We rolled out of our sleeping bags and got to work flipping pancakes and frying eggs. Classic. 

And I loved seeing where Sam worked and all the of jobs that he does. They love him there and will be sad to see him go. 

So it was a great weekend, after saying goodbye to Benson, who you know was with us for a little while. We took him out for Swedish meatballs since he admitted to never having them before. 

Your name comes up often in conversation. And in prayer. We hope all is well and love you so much. I get random comments about how people look forward to your emails. Auntie Liz especially made mention about how much she loves your style of writing. It a high point for many so keep them coming. 

Love you forever,

Mom