“Never Build a Campfire in a Haystack!”
Wake Maberry
Tales of childhood to adulthood in and around Sequim
Available by email at wakemaberry@gmail.com or call 461-9787
If you ask Wake Maberry, 69, what he thought of his childhood in Sequim, he says “It’s amazing that I actually grew up.”
Maberry, a retired educator, part-time charter bus driver, and now author, turns his attention to focusing his belly laugh stories and anecdotes into his first book “Never Build a Campfire in a Haystack!”
“My wife (Connie) and cousin (cartoonist Bron Smith) have been telling me to write a book for 30 years,” Maberry said.
Smith would know since he’s a witness in the centerpiece of Maberry’s book. In 1955, the cousins were playing in their grandparents’ barn on Happy Valley Road when Maberry had the idea to build a campfire.
While Smith was cautious, Maberry said he talked his cousin into the idea.
After starting a fire in a circle of rocks with loose hay, it began to get out of control
so Maberry’s idea was to smother it — with more loose hay.
“We looked at it spellbound,” he said.
They didn’t panic at first and went into their grandparents’ house where Maberry’s mother and grandmother were canning.
“I asked for a bucket of water and the first thing my mom asked was, “Is the barn on fire?” Maberry said. “My grandma went to the couch to lay down with what we called a sick headache and my mom called the volunteer fire department.”
Maberry said cars lined up and down Happy Valley to see the blaze and he and Smith were so terrified, they figured they’d go to prison as third- and fourth-graders.
They weren’t punished because Maberry figures his family feels it was an accident.
“I don’t remember my grandpa saying a word to me about the fire,” he said. “It was just hay. It was a fun place to play and we ruined it.”
Maberry’s “Never Build a Campfire!” is filled with life stories, which he said stems from starting to write his family’s Christmas letters in 1985.
“I started writing those and embellishing it with humor,” he said. “I’ve had all this material written down for years.”
His tales range from his attempt to get a dog to a family rafting trip.
Maberry never figured himself to become a writer.
“One of the things I remember on my report card is that it said, “Mind wanders. Has difficulty completing assignments,” he said. “I focused a lot on sports. The only compliment I remember getting in school for academics was from Mr. Nelson, my English teacher, telling my mom I was a good writer.”
Maberry said he’s always like writing but he first pursued education.
He taught special education for a few years in Moses Lake before switching to Christian education. Maberry retired from teaching at Sequim Bible Christian School in 1995.
“If you’re going to do education, it’s 24/7,” he said. “If you ever get to the point where you’re not willing to do it 24/7, then you should stop. I eventually got to that point. I was ready to go home at 5.”
Afterward, he and his wife worked in the tour business for 12-plus years where they visited every state, all over Canada, and saw several Broadway shows. The couple spent six years on the road about 200-250 days a year up through 2011 when Maberry went into business for himself for a few more years.
He continues to serve as a part-time charter driver and Connie recently stopped working as a seasonal employee for the IRS. In his spare time, he’s continuing to work on a second book with more stories.
To purchase “Never Build a Campfire in a Haystack!” from Maberry, email him at wakemaberry@gmail.com or call 461-9787.
