My childhood summers were filled with long, sunny, summer days on sparkling water at MY family's cottage. My Grandparents purchased a very modest brick cottage, on a sandy waterfront property. My Grandfather planted seed pine trees and today, they stand tall all around the property, shadowing the house.
My Grandparents have left a legacy rich with memories; memories that shaped who I am, who my Mother, uncle, and aunt are, and it continues on now, as I create new memories there with my own family. I'm very, very fortunate to have such a place. It's the one place that has always been a constant in my life, the one place I can always go back to, that feels like coming home again.
I struggle now to put into words the depth of my connection with the cottage, the place, the water and the wildlife. I regularly have repetitive dreams about the place. Now, years after my Grandparents have passed away, I feel most connected with my Grandmother when I am there, as if she were in the next room getting ready to go out and drop a fishing line in the water. My Grandmother will always be one of the most beloved people in my life, and I am more than grateful to her for creating a safe haven in her love. She made the cottage the one place we could all go, and totally fall into the rhythm of just being together, enjoying the sun, getting in the boat to go for a ride, swimming, water skiing, fishing, Scrabble, Yahtzee, berry picking and walks in the woods.
I learned how to bait a hook, to fish, to be quiet (some would say I haven't really learned that one yet), to be safe around water, to row, to paddle, to operate an outboard motor....I learned about family.
As in the movie "On Golden Pond", my Grandfather was a hard, mean, and difficult man to be around, while my Grandmother was soft, selfless, generous, compassionate, mischievous and fun. The two of them made an unlikely team, but somehow, they made it work for well over 50 years, and in turn, gave us all wealth and riches far exceeding any kind of monetary, or material legacy.
I can't wait to get up to the cottage this summer. Greeting the lake, hearing the loons, seeing the eagles soar overhead; it refreshes and heals the soul. Two years ago, I was lucky enough to see an otter swim through the channel on an early morning hunt for food.
I came of age in this place, and then I left for a decade. I turned my back on the place, it's magic, my family, and I miss them. I miss my Grandparents so much now that they're gone. I can only hope that Sophia will also come of age enveloped in the great north woods. The experiential life lessons that the cottage provided me, will always stay with me.
Our place is not grand or fancy, no high brow elegance other than what Mother Nature provides. Thank you, Gramma and Grampa. I wish I knew then, what I know now. I would have thanked them again and again, when they could appreciate knowing that the fruits of a lifetime of labor payed out 1,000 fold.
Our view in the early morning
The neighbor's pier (early morning mist)
Not much more exciting than your first "big" catch
The good life.....
What a beautifully written post, T! It nearly made me cry. So much feeling.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joni! It makes ME cry when I read it, because it just IS so dear to me. Can't wait to get up there in a week or so.
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