the Walnut Diary

I found this on Tractor By Net.com, most likely posted in about 2012. Diabetes and the aging out of a generation of grad students at Queen’s have put an end to sugar season at the farm, and I miss it.

Saturday’s visitors were a hoot. Dr. Xu Han, a young woman who has just completed her Phd. in biology, brought along her 11-month-old son, Larry (named after the St. Lawrence River) and her mother, Donghua Li. Her husband R.J. had to run the family shop. Anyway, Xu’s mother had just arrived from Bejing to take her turn at raising Larry upon the return to China of Xu’s mother-in-law. Donghua spoke no English, but we faced a happy barrage of Cantonese whether or not her daughter was within earshot to translate.

Donghua loves the air in Ontario, which she pronounced clean and good for her grandson. On her tour of the workshop she had to know the function of each of my many full-sized woodworking tools. Smart and self-confident, she had no trouble understanding what each did, and was particularly intrigued by how I used my shaper to make beveled panels in the house. She took a long look around the interior of our house (a 5 year renovation job) and voiced her approval to her daughter of my skills as a husband.

To Donghua maple sap tasted good, like cane juice, but the syrup was too sweet. She tasted it, grimaced, and promptly added water to make it more palatable.

As nearly as I could tell none of the three had ever touched a dog. Our resident English springer gradually grew on them, though the mothers were very worried when she barked a greeting that she would harm Larry. Larry decided that he liked this strange creature, even when she took his cookie and brushed his face with her tail.

Two years ago my first encounter with Xu and R.J. was again at sugar making. Xu was fascinated with the block splitter mounted on my tractor. She spit every block she could find around the sugar arch, even raiding the woodpile in my shop for more victims. But the fun really started when she asked if she could learn how to use an axe.

I have a crummy, plastic-handled model, so I showed it to her. All of the sudden R.J. jumped into the game, as well. They kept us in stitches learning how to split small blocks. What they lacked in skill they more than made up for in enthusiasm. My son’s friends still talk about that afternoon.

In four years Xu and R.J. have learned English and prospered through superhuman effort and a great attitude. They bring a lot to the table.