Grape Vines and a Hole in the Fence

Our backyard had a peach tree, a pear tree, a HUGE lilac bush that was more like a tree (dang, I miss that bush - it always smelled soooo good), and a fence with grape vines that actually produced a few times. If I had grown up in California you might ask, "Your point?" Since I didn't grow up in California, it was a big deal. Grapes don't just thrive in Utah. I mean, it snows in Utah. And the summers are hot and arid. Our average humidity is zero. Okay, there might actually be a percentage of humidity, but you know what I mean. It was a miracle that these grapes thrived at all.

We "shared" the fence with an adjoining backyard. This, however, was no ordinary fence. Nope. This fence had a hole in it. You're saying, "Big deal!" right now, aren't you? Well, yes, in fact. It WAS a big deal. Because the hole in THIS fence was big enough that (small) people could fit through it. And it was ... wait for it ... hidden! When the vines of the grapes grew it became even more hidden. It was like a secret passage to a faraway hidden land. Like the gate in "The Secret Garden." Except the faraway hidden land was really the Leifson's backyard. And you had to be careful not to wreck Mark's beautiful garden when you went through. It wasn't the same as the Secret Garden, but it was a BIG garden. You could get lost in that thing. (I think one time I might have! Sometimes I'm still afraid of corn fields because they make me claustrophobic. I might have night terrors tonight.)

The hole in this fence was how I got to my best friend, Shauna's, house. It just made us so much cooler than any other kids on the block. When a group of us wanted to get together and the meeting point was at my house or Shauna's house we were both the first people there. Every time. I think the others thought we potentially had magical powers. And we didn't share that secret fence with very many. A handful of other kids knew about it, but for the most part we kept it to ourselves.

One year, we had an exceptionally good grape crop. I remember Mom (at least I think it was Mom) bottling jar after jar of stuff from those grapes. (I might only remember this because I had to carry a ton of those jars downstairs to our food storage room. And now I will have nightmares. *shudder* That room was sketchy.) Anyway, I remember helping with the grape picking that year and being sad when we finally picked the last batch because you could see through the fence completely and our hole (our secret passage) was now visible. Exposed for all to see. No longer a secret.

And then I realized the only people who ever used it even when others knew about it were me and Shauna (and some of our siblings). It really wasn't that big of a deal that you could see it. But it was still cool. Because I said so. And because we still talk about it. And because it is STILL THERE. We moved, but the Leifson's stayed put. The people that bought our house were a daughter and son-in-law of our other best friends, the Huffs. They kept the secret passage. And I believe Mark said they use it, too. I think the daughter and son-in-law use some of Mark's property for their own garden and get to it through the hole in the fence.

Now, I just need to find out if they still get any grapes from those vines or if they cut them down. I love it when life carries on the way it should (ahem, I mean, the way you remember it) even after you're long gone (not dead, just moved away). Next time Shauna's in town I think we might need to visit the hole in the fence and examine the grape status. And then say a prayer of thanks that we don't have to bottle those things!!!