Farewell to our Hemet Haven

I’ve recently returned from a trip to Southern California, to collect personal artifacts from my parents’ place in Hemet, California. They have decided to sell the mobile home, which once belonged to my paternal grandparents and has since served as base camp for many wonderful family gatherings and trips to the dessert. Early in this blogs' history, I reported on Hemet Haven, and then later in Ahead of Their Time. My folks and I have started many an outing from this Hemet haven over the years, and returned gratefully at the end of the day.

Golden evening light along Tehachapi Pass

For this trip, my sister and I and our spouses travelled from Oregon and Northern California. As always, my husband and I enjoyed the chance to be on-the-road again, after quite a few months staying close to home. Many of the farms and orchards along Interstate 5 looked green and productive (others were dry and  fallow). We decided to bypass Los Angeles, and spent the night in Tehachapi on the way down. We encountered a major traffic problem on our way through Tehachapi Pass, but enjoyed the golden evening light and the California chaparral landscape. The next day we had a chance to visit the famed Kohnen's Country Bakery in Tehachapi (highly recommended by my folks), and stocked up on bread and treats for our weekend.

Bird paradise

It was a joy to see my sister and brother-in-law again, after several years' separation due to COVID-19. They spent the night in the mobile home, and my husband and I stayed in a nearby hotel that is landscaped with palms, bougainvillea, Bird-of-Paradise and vines, and populated with scores of birds. In the morning and the evening, the air was filled with bird song.

Sale Pending

We spent an extended weekend sorting through photos, letters, and mementos to figure out what to keep. We hosted Zoom and phone calls with family members to help with the decision making. Several generations of artifacts had accumulated in the mobile home, from both our maternal and paternal families. My mom, aunt, and dad have done a great job of organizing over the years. They have also identified significant pictures and had scanned many for family members, with plans to scan more. It’s been a big and loving undertaking, for which I am grateful.

Taking a break at Applebee's in Hemet

Don't think that all we did was work. We enjoyed meeting the realtor, Bob Meadows, and several friends from the mobile home park; and eating at some of our favorite haunts – Los Vaqueros Cantina and Grill, Polly's Pies, and Applebee's Grill. The weather was surprisingly cool for the first several days, so we also enjoyed brisk walks around the park.

 

Enjoying Los Vaqueros in Hemet

It was an exciting and emotional weekend – seeing artifacts from beloved family and friends from the past, working together to figure out what was most important items for each of us, saying farewell to a place that is filled with memories. Of course these are just physical objects, but they represent the hopes and dreams of the past and evoke many memories. In this modern era, most of us have more items than we need and the minimalist younger generation does not want the burden of carrying artifacts through time, so it is important to be selective. We were able to whittle down the keepers to fit into our cars, but we still have our work cut out for us!

Treasures from the past to enjoy and share