Nancy

 

Today was a somber day as we buried Nancy's cremains at the Evergreen Cemetery in Oconto, Wisconsin. She is buried with her late husband, William Benchley, in the Veterans' section of the cemetery. Goodbye, my sweet bride. May you rest in God's peace.

Home

 

I've made it to my house in Oconto, but I haven't made it home. It's just an empty house full of stuff now. Most of the stuff in here is something that Nancy brought in. But without Nancy here, it's just a house full of stuff. I don't know how long I'll stick around until I hook on to my trailer again and go elsewhere. I'll be here for at least a month, though.

Amana Colonies, IA

 

I've made it to the Amana Colonies where I'm staying at the Amana Colonies RV Park in Amana, IA, with no problems. I'll leave out from here tomorrow morning on my last leg to Oconto.

 

The Amana Colonies are seven villages on 26,000 acres located in Iowa County in east-central Iowa. The villages were built and settled by German Pietists, who were persecuted in their homeland by the German state government and the Lutheran Church. Calling themselves the True Inspiration Congregations, they first settled in New York near Buffalo in what is now the town of West Seneca. However, seeking more isolated surroundings, they moved to Iowa in 1856. They lived a communal life until 1932.

 

For eighty years, the Amana Colony maintained an almost completely self-sufficient local economy, importing very little from the industrializing American economy. The Amanians were able to achieve this independence and lifestyle by adhering to the specialized crafting and farming occupations that they had brought with them from Europe. Craftsmen passed their skills and techniques on from one generation to the next. They used hand, horse, wind, and water power, and made their own furniture, clothes, and other goods. The community voted to form a for-profit organization during the Great Depression, the Amana Society, which included the Amana Corporation.

 

I went to the Millstream Brau Haus for dinner. I asked for a brewed ice tea with my fischbrötchen. They didn't have brewed ice tea. The fischbrötchen was good though.

Nancy

 

Well, it's been a month now since my beautiful bride left this world. My heart is still broken. We talked about maybe selling the house and living full-time in the trailer. I still don't know what I'm going to do now. It's one day at a time.