Mission Hank

Strangely, Hank is important to the boys.  Not that they ever play with Hank, we don't take Hank anywhere with us, he doesn't even come inside.  But for some reason they always seem to mention him in passing sort of as a member of our family.  Maybe its because they think Hank truly slows traffic by our house and that they are safer when playing in the yard because of him.  Our neighbors gave Hank to us for that reason, having seen Les one day running to grab Heath before he got too close to the road, so we have said from the beginning that that was Hank's purpose.  And he didn't come with that name - Heath gave it to him - which is good because it is much better/easier than calling him 'flourescent yellow slow down man'.

I never thought I would be that person - shaking my finger at teenagers (and grown ups) as they drive by WAY too fast as my children ride their bikes near the edge of the road.  I am even talking to neighbors about the possibility of a speed bump....yup, that person....so, Hank has become an important sign to folks to slow down on our road that many use as they enter and leave the neighborhood.

So, it was significant one morning when he was gone.  We figured it was rambling neighborhood teens as it happened the night before a day off from school.  The boys didn't know why someone would take him.  I mean, obviously he wouldn't leave on his own or he would have by now.  So that was that, Hank was gone.  Hopefully someone was taking good care of him.

Until we got a message from a neighbor from across the neighborhood one night: "... we think we saw your yellow man in the woods down the road from you house..."  WHAT!?!?!  The boys were immediately excited, and Les and I fed off that, planning an impromptu rescue mission... right now, in the dark and in footie PJs.  We jumped in the car with flashlights, Lesley walked along and peered into the woods - a downsloped, covered in ivy and blackberry - but no luck in seeing him, though flourescent he was, in the dark.  Less a failed attempt than a spike in the excitement, as now we had to come back, SOON.  So this escalated for a couple more days till the next night when we could head down.

This was to be it, we had what we needed to make this mission a success: Dad had scoped it out that morning to confirm he was there, lying in the woods; we had lights; a rescue rope; the wagon, dried out; camera; and the adrenaline of the boys to pull him out of the thicket.

 They pulled hard...

 He got a little stuck...

 They pulled harder....success!

 Our voyage back home....

Les and I laughed as we pulled the wagon back in the dark.  wondering waht the few passersby must have thought....what the Hank kidnappers would think when they spied him, unscathed and back in his original location.  It was a joyous occasion and one we will remember fondly, at least Les and I.