By Elaine Rassel
It doesn’t seem possible that half of the summer is almost over with. When towns start to have their fairs, it is almost time for school to begin. Marcus will be having a Wednesday Sesquicentennial kick-off on Wed. Aug. 11 at 7 p.m. After that it is all about the Marcus Fair. The horses from Colorado will be here again and performing Saturday, August 14 at 10 a.m. at the Horse Arena. They will be performing again on Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the Horse Arena. You don’t want to miss this group of performers!
Things are almost getting back to normal at my house. It took me awhile to get used to eating supper before 6 p.m. while at Heartland Care as most of the time it is almost 9 p.m. or whenever they are done mowing! Now it is late supper again. I must say that I was very thankful for the care Heartland Care gave me while I was recuperating. The nurses were very friendly and caring. The physical therapy department got me back on my feet (even though I didn’t like to see them coming!!). It is surprising how much a person needs to get jump started once there was surgery, and these therapists know their business.
How about the people that cook the meals. If I think cooking for three people can be a chore, think about cooking for almost 40 people or more! There are so many things that I like but I know better than to eat it. They were so good in substituting when there was something I couldn’t eat. I must admit that I don’t like meatloaf but the meatloaf there is something I could eat anytime. In fact there was the day after they had meatloaf that the meal had something I couldn’t eat. I said that if they had some left over meatloaf, I would take that and they did!
I was in Room 9 in the new part the last one in the group and the furthest one for anyone coming to that room. It was good exercise for Zachary and Bethany! These rooms are beautiful_almost like being in a hotel room! Heartland Care can be very proud of this addition.
A few weeks before I left for surgery, I came across a short handled brush in the bathroom. I decided to use it to clean the toilet and it was really better than the usual brush until Bethany found out that I had used her brush she had never used but had intended to use it to clean her water bottle with! Now it was mine!
When I got home I found a brush just like the other one but this one had a slim brush attached to it. I didn’t remember the slim one but decided to check the toilet on the main floor to see if it needed cleaning. Yes, it could so I took off the slim brush and proceeded to use the other one. Then I hung this brush on the railing going to the basement so Zachary could take the hint and clean that toilet. Bethany saw this brush and let met have it with her tongue! This was the second one she had bought for cleaning her water bottle and I could keep this one also. The next day she informed me that she had bought a spongy one that was made of rainbow colors just in case I couldn’t see colors! Well, I have two brushes that are far better than the old brush and I really don’t think that her rainbow brush would do as good a job as the one with bristles!
These upcoming celebrations brought to mind when a friend of mine decided to have a surprise birthday party for her dad. There had been a lot of tragedy in that family for years and her dad hadn’t had a party for years. She invited friends and we were to meet at the Remsen Shelter House. He was surprised when he walked in. She had a meal planned as well as cake and ice cream. It was just what her dad needed! There had been some younger relatives invited that decided to do something else. The mother had planned a surprise birthday party for her daughter. After we all yelled, “Surprise” for the dad, suddenly there was another “surprise” for the girl. The one giving the party for her dad was not pleased that this woman decided to celebrate at the same time. Now there were two celebrations going on with of course, the girl’s receiving the better of the two. When two celebrations are put together, one is going to outdo the other. Is this what is going on with the Sequicentennial and the Fair? Which one is going to receive the most attention?
I saw in the paper the other day where parents and an abducted son were reunited after 24 years. After 24 years of heartache and searching, a Chinese couple were reunited with their son who was abducted as a toddler outside their front gate.
The story was of their reunion after father, Guo crisscrossed China by motorcycle searching for his son and became an activist who helped police return other missing children to their parents prompted an outpouring of public sympathy and condemnation of abductions.
Guo Xinzhen, age 2 and a half was grabbed by a woman and her boyfriend who took him northwest to Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing, the Chinese capital, according to police. From there, he was sold to a couple in central China.
Abductions of children for sale are reported regularly in China, though how often it happens is unclear. The problem is aggravated by restrictions that until 2015 allowed most urban couples only one child. Boys are sold to couples who want a son to look after them in old age. Girls go to parents who want a servant or a bride for an only son.
The woman and her boyfriend, identified only by the surnames Tang and Hu, were caught and confessed to trafficking three boys. They have yet to stand trial, but potential penalties range up to death. Kidnappers target children who are too young to know their names or home towns and sometimes even that they were abducted. There was no word on whether the couple who bought Guo Xinzhen would face penalties.
Guo Gangtang, now 51, started his search carrying a flag with his son’s photo and details, including “a scar on his left little toe.” The father, Guo, wrote on his social media account that he wore out 10 motorcycles riding through 30 of China’s 34 provinces and regions. In a 2015 television interview, Guo said he nearly fell over a cliff when he was blown off his motorcycle in a rainstorm. He operates a shop in Beijing that sells artwork. He received financial help from his father, who kept working into his 70’s and other relatives.
Guo Xinzhen grew up in Henan province, according to police, but no other details of his life have been reported. It isn’t clear whether he knew he was ever abducted. His mother, Zhang, described her despair from day one as, “What use is it for me to live? It was me who lost the child.”
Guo Xinzhen said he will stay in Henan but plans to visit his biological parents regularly. He is proud of his father for never giving up on finding his abducted son.
I received a call from John Dorr the other day in reference to the question I asked if Fred Dorr in the article about the senior employee that was killed in that “Raging River” Adventureland Park that represented the victims wife in the lawsuit was the Fred Dorr from Marcus. Yes, he is! He worked three years and took the case to the Iowa Supreme court and won the case. Thanks for the call! It will be interesting if the recent killing of the 11 year-old boy in this same “Raging River” will have the same final result (even though they have a different lawyer.)
Keep in your thoughts and prayers those who have lost loved ones to death, are struggling with health problems, finding a way to overcome financial problems, wanting to go back to work, or closing the gap between friends or family that has had them in a social distant relationship for too many years.
I will close with this quote from James Baldwin (1924-1987), American novelist, “People are trapped in history and history is trapped in them.”