Quote of the Day

If you were all alone in the universe with no one to talk to, no one with which to share the beauty of the stars, to laugh with, to touch, what would be your purpose in life? It is other life, it is love, which gives your life meaning. This is harmony. We must discover the joy of each other, the joy of challenge, the joy of growth.

- Mitsugi Saotome

The Farm

Isn't it funny how someplace that you have never actually lived can feel so much like home? When we talk about going to 'the farm' in my family, this is where we mean. It is actually more like a series of farms....the original homestead is where my grandmother and her siblings was born. Spread out from there are acres and acres of land owned by their descendants. These farms seem to be passed around from person to person as the need arises over time. Still, we can start walking in almost any direction and end up with family. This farm belongs to my Aunt Beth - her late husband Uncle Jack was my grandmothers youngest brother.

We have been going up to the farm since we were children, and it does not seem to have changed a bit - the sugar shack where Uncle Jack boiled maple syrup, the river which floods every few years, sometimes stranding the cows on the wrong side, the rocks by the house that hundreds of kids have climbed, the barn where us city kids would follow like little ducklings as the chores were done. It is wonderful that now, my kids are also coming to know the farm. Family history has never been so fun!

Family Reunion

Once a year people drive from all over southern Ontario(and occasionally Nova Scotia, Florida, and even Australia!) to the little town of Alvinston for one heck of a family reunion. This is the reunion of my mothers side of the family - mostly my maternal grandmother's brothers and sisters and their descendents. I didn't do an actual head count, but there is always a full house, many many children, and lots of great food!