Sailing into a New Life

The sight of a sailboat floating in the misty sunrise greeted me this morning. It inspired me to get the dogs out of bed to take them for a long walk. I figured at that time of the morning there would be fewer dogs (wrong), and few bicycles (right).

Yesterday afternoon I noticed a gaggle of kids walking down the road, accompanied by two women in burkas, without covered faces. They were encouraging the kids to stay off the road and had made up a cute song to remind them. Suddenly a little dog ran out at them, causing a fright for a few of the kids. The women calmed them down and told them there was no harm, and then got them to stay on the dogs side of the road. When the kids asked why, the woman told them that the dogs parents wouldn't want it on the road either. Their garb seemed foreign, but their attitudes were Canadian.

This morning a young girl/woman (I couldn't tell age), passed me on a bicycle; she was wearing the full, face covering head dress, yet she was riding a bicycle. I thought she was well on her way to becoming Canadian as well.

We ran some errands in the morning (some having to do with poop bags), then finally it was time to get outside. Grace strutted around her outside cage, pleased to have a bit of wind ruffling her feathers. The dogs raced out trying to get a spot on the cushion. Bella lost. The waves were crashing again, making enough white noise to drive me out of my head!

I've figured out how to stay outside when it is too windy for the awning, and too cold to stay in the shade anyway - I position my chair with its back towards the sun and stretch my legs out in front of me. Enough sun to keep me warm, but none on my face. 'Course this means giving up the good view. But I can still hear the view!

"He sat heavily on the picnic table bench, head bent. The decision was clear, they wouldn't be able to do this anymore. It had taken him several attempts to get into the campsite, including a trip around the campground to realign the huge camper. Backing up seemed so much more difficult than it had been. He thought about his wife and how unsteady she was on her feet. She was adamant that they not give it all up, but he was just waiting for her to take a tumble on the rough campsite. Even getting in and out of the truck was difficult for them both. They had always said that sooner or later they'd sell the camper - now it seemed that the time had come."

In a world darkened by ethnic conflicts that tear nations apart, Canada stands as a model of how people of different cultures can live and work together in peace, prosperity, and mutual respect. ~ Bill Clinton