Tonight, Corrie and I were outside: me...working on fixing our daughter's bike tire; Corrie...harassing me as I was working on fixing our daughter's bike tire.
The phone starts ringing.
Knowing that our youngest is the only one actually in the house.... and knowing that she is not comfortable figuring out how to turn on the phone to answer it... I rushed inside to grab the phone.
I believe it was on the 3rd ring that I picked up and said "Honnolds".
There was a quiet pause on the other end of the line. Normally, this happens right before a telemarketer says "Hello, can I speak with Matt Hanneld" (or some other misprounounced variant of my name). My mind was preparing for the worst... ready to come to the realization that I had dropped outside to rush in and grab a call for someone wanting to sell me magazines or have me support some cause that I've never heard of.
Instead.... what I hear was such a pleasant surprise.
"Matt.... this is Wayne."
Brief history here.... Wayne is a distant relative of my grandfather, thus making Wayne a distant relative of me. His family's homestead was just down the country road from my grandparents house out in rural Edgar County. As a boy, Wayne and his wife (and some of his family) attended church with our family at the now long-gone Harmony United Methodist Church out on Route 49 about 4 miles north of Kansas.
Other than church, I'd run into Wayne here and there around town. Plus, when I had a job at the local bank (the now long-gone Kansas State Bank), I'd see Wayne on a regular basis. He was always such a blast to have at my teller window... cheerful, smiling, always a good story to tell.
And, it was a known fact that I'd see Wayne every year on the 3rd Sunday in July for the Honnold Family Reunion. Wayne is the long-time historian for the Honnold family. He pretty much knows all the in's and out's of just about every limb, branch, stem and twig of the Honnold family tree. His specialty is ancestry, and he is good at it.... very good at it.
Before tonight, I don't believe I have seen or talked to Wayne since the date in 2011 when the photo above was taken.
Anyway, Wayne was calling me for some information he had seen on Facebook in the "Honnold Family" group, which I help administer. Once we got squared away on that, our conversation turned to other topics... he asked how things are going for us.... how the girls are doing... how the crops are looking.
Wayne was very excited about a little adventure he goes on tomorrow.... headed to see the Cubs play the Cardinals down in St. Louis. As a Cardinals fan, I would like to think that Wayne, being the caliber and class of man that he is, would be rooting for the Cards tomorrow, but I neglected to ask. As I type this, I'm sure he's already fast asleep... having closed out his day looking forward to the baseball game tomorrow.
Although brief, our conversation was a fantastic one. It was great to hear his voice. Great to think back to all the fun "Wayne moments" that I have in my memory bank from years past. He is just 1 of several "seasoned" folks back in my hometown that mean so much to the community and to our family.
Enjoy the game Wayne (and "go Cards"!).
Out for now....
Matt
The phone starts ringing.
Knowing that our youngest is the only one actually in the house.... and knowing that she is not comfortable figuring out how to turn on the phone to answer it... I rushed inside to grab the phone.
I believe it was on the 3rd ring that I picked up and said "Honnolds".
There was a quiet pause on the other end of the line. Normally, this happens right before a telemarketer says "Hello, can I speak with Matt Hanneld" (or some other misprounounced variant of my name). My mind was preparing for the worst... ready to come to the realization that I had dropped outside to rush in and grab a call for someone wanting to sell me magazines or have me support some cause that I've never heard of.
Instead.... what I hear was such a pleasant surprise.
"Matt.... this is Wayne."
Brief history here.... Wayne is a distant relative of my grandfather, thus making Wayne a distant relative of me. His family's homestead was just down the country road from my grandparents house out in rural Edgar County. As a boy, Wayne and his wife (and some of his family) attended church with our family at the now long-gone Harmony United Methodist Church out on Route 49 about 4 miles north of Kansas.
Other than church, I'd run into Wayne here and there around town. Plus, when I had a job at the local bank (the now long-gone Kansas State Bank), I'd see Wayne on a regular basis. He was always such a blast to have at my teller window... cheerful, smiling, always a good story to tell.
And, it was a known fact that I'd see Wayne every year on the 3rd Sunday in July for the Honnold Family Reunion. Wayne is the long-time historian for the Honnold family. He pretty much knows all the in's and out's of just about every limb, branch, stem and twig of the Honnold family tree. His specialty is ancestry, and he is good at it.... very good at it.
 |
| (there's Wayne, front & center) |
Anyway, Wayne was calling me for some information he had seen on Facebook in the "Honnold Family" group, which I help administer. Once we got squared away on that, our conversation turned to other topics... he asked how things are going for us.... how the girls are doing... how the crops are looking.
Wayne was very excited about a little adventure he goes on tomorrow.... headed to see the Cubs play the Cardinals down in St. Louis. As a Cardinals fan, I would like to think that Wayne, being the caliber and class of man that he is, would be rooting for the Cards tomorrow, but I neglected to ask. As I type this, I'm sure he's already fast asleep... having closed out his day looking forward to the baseball game tomorrow.
Although brief, our conversation was a fantastic one. It was great to hear his voice. Great to think back to all the fun "Wayne moments" that I have in my memory bank from years past. He is just 1 of several "seasoned" folks back in my hometown that mean so much to the community and to our family.
Enjoy the game Wayne (and "go Cards"!).
Out for now....
Matt