Compton's Corner: Farewell, Alaska

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Been awhile since I wrote a column. Life has a way of getting in the way sometimes and I just haven’t had time to sit down in front of the computer and collect my thoughts.

You see, a while back we had the wife’s folks come up for what will probably be their only trip to Alaska. Her dad was recently diagnosed with stage IV cancer that can’t be removed, and her mother is facing imminent kidney failure, and we were faced with now-or-never window to have them come up and show them around. Took them down to Kenai to watch us dipnet, around the Valley and I even made a trip way out to my dad’s house in the middle-of-nowhere with the father-in-law. Had a great time.

But soon my wife will be donating a kidney and they both need help. Helping your parents is a big part of the Filipino culture and with them living 2,200 miles away it’s been tough flying Glenny back and forth. Add to that the fact that my mom is also taking care of her physically incapacitated husband and mother and….well…our frequent flyer mileage to Washington has been racking up. This past summer we finally came to the realization that our options were getting limited and more challenging — continue to fly my wife, Glenny, back and forth every month or so (which means she can’t look for work) and spend a ton of money, take a lot of leave or back to western Washington — a place we practically ran from and vowed we would never, ever return. We sighed as we admitted “never say never” to each other. We were going to have to move back to western Washington.

So, in the fine Compton tradition of doing things backwards, I flew down to Washington a few weeks ago and retrieved my truck and trailer that have been sitting down there forever and drove them up. Yes, I was preparing to eventually move to Washington, but driving UP the Alaska Highway. Along the way I lost an alternator and blew a trailer tire in the middle of nowhere, with no cell phone reception, at 3 a.m. Good times. But we’d need the truck and trailer for our eventual move which we had planned, hopefully, for some time next summer.

I leave next week. Yes, it really happened that quick. I saw a job posted that was almost written for me and I thought “what the heck, I’ll give it a go,” and they hired me. I now get to load up the Mini on the trailer, attach it to the truck and drive back DOWN mere weeks after just getting here. As I type this one last column for “Compton’s Corner”, Glenny is frantically packing boxes and getting ready to load the container that is slated to be dropped off next Tuesday. As I scrape the frost off the windows every morning I feel more like I’m making a last-minute escape than a move.

It’s very bittersweet. I’m trying hard to find the “good” things about western Washington in order to be positive. Focusing on things I never got around to doing when we lived there before, things I did but not as often as we could have. I think one of the biggest changes we’ve noticed is the perspective in mileage we’ll be bringing with us. As Glenny and I looked at the map, we were laughing at ourselves over those places we used to look at as being “so far away”. Yachats, Oregon is 300 miles? GASP! Port Angeles a whopping 71 miles away? Oh no! That’s a trip we only make when we have time! The North Cascades required a 118 mile drive? Gosh golly gee, we’d better save that for when we have a nice long weekend! HA HA HA!! Ohhhh wow!

I’m going to miss you, Alaska. Oh sure, we’re going to get back up here as often as we can, but it won’t be the same. Alaska has been good to us. It really has. Specifically I’m going to use my column to say:

Amy Spargo, you were the ring in the water when my kids needed it most. My wife and I have been amazed at what an excellent benefit you are to the Mat Su School District.

Don Malone, Palmer Middle School wrestling coach but so much more than that. A key factor in teaching my boys maturity, respect and confidence. I’m forever in your debt.

Heather Resz for always being there when I needed to bounce ideas about, whatever, whether it had to do with a column I was writing or not.

But most of all, thank you to Mike Dennison… “Uncle Mike”…for being the one person to really take care of me and my family the entire time we’ve lived here. We’re going to miss you most of all.

I’m spending my days staring at the mountains and just kind of looking around town as I drive from my home in Palmer to work in Wasilla. Trying to take it all in before I head south next week.

Thank you, Alaska. Thank you, Mat-Su.

Ben Compton is a Palmer resident and publishes his column as “Compton’s Corner,” the same title used by his grandmother, Phyllis Compton, a longtime Frontiersman columnist. Contact him at bcompton1971@yahoo.com.