A Tribute to a Dear Family Friend

Every family has them - those relations on the perimeter of the family's structure, reliable and comforting as any, except family membership isn't official, it's honourary. These connections last through decades, and form part of a family’s fabric, and in quiet unassuming ways, help strengthen a family's character over time.

It was 1974, at my parents' cottage that we were introduced to this special friend, whose presence would become a fixture during our summers through the years. It’s only upon learning of a serious injury suffered by our friend that I recently came to appreciate her loyalty through 38 years.
  

Having chaperoned teenagers’ parties at my parents’ cottage in the 70's, guided our young family's visits to Provincial Parks of Ontario in the 90's and more recently helping us manage the waves as we built at our own cottage, our beloved green fibreglass canoe carries on.

The threat to her wellbeing triggered memories that there had been other times when we almost lost her.  Most notably, when she was only with a us a few years, my dad received a phone call in Ottawa from the Quebec Provincial Police. They were asking about a canoe, wanting to know if my dad owned one or if he had recently sold one that had his driver's license etched into it's metal gunell. Unbeknownst to us our young watercraft had been stolen from the family cottage. The police had pulled over a suspicous truck on highway 11 (now 105) near Wakefield and rescued her for us.

On Diving

With the recent Euro soccer tournament and the NHL playoffs a not too distant memory, it occurred to me that the primary meaning of the word "diving" is evolving. While the change is not as complete as the meaning that "surfing" has undergone thanks to the internet, the change for "diving" is decidedly for the worse. This is my stand for the conventional, wonderful "diving".

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Whenever I tell someone we have a cottage, it prompts a great interest and some fairly predictable questions: How far is it? Is it on the water?   Are motor boats allowed on the lake?

Recently, I noticed that another question is surprising me with its frequency:  Can you dive off the dock?  When I hear that question I know the person shares my passion for that short but sharp thrill.  And I realize it is probably just one of many things about the cottage I have come to take for granted after just a few years. The question and the reaction to my response that yes indeed, it’s a great dock for diving, reminds me that I am very lucky that our shore line drops off enough to enjoy this simple pleasure.

Diving off the dock sounds like quite a simple endeavour, but like most things, our personalities are therein revealed.  I have observed three categories of divers. First, there are the freestyle divers. Freestylers don't think about their dive for more than a couple of seconds before they launch themselves off the boards, gladly compromising form for creativity and quick wet results.  They may spin and enter feet first or dive sideways head first, but they are always completely satisfied with the results. Next we have our methodical divers. These swimmers carefully position themselves and contemplate the movements needed to complete a smooth entry and are satisfied with the straight, least disruptive piercing of the water's surface. And finally, we have our philosopher-divers.  These people write a wide ranging discourse in their head while standing in position, nowhere near ready to leap. They contemplate every sensation from the feel of the texture of the edge of the cedar boards which their toes have grasped to the filtered heat from the sunlight, shifting as the trees sway in the breeze. Then they anticipate the excitement of the brief mid-air interlude, the swift entry and the inevitable rush with the chill that will follow. Okay, maybe I've over analysed the philosopher-divers, obviously revealing which category I'm in.  Now sometimes people refer to philosopher-divers as wusses, but really, we just have so much to appreciate that we need extra time to enjoy it.





 


























To optimize the experience for all divers, 2012's first cottage project is a new dock ladder. There is no more need to stuggle to get onto the dock with a push-up and a quarter twist. Whether you want to instantly repeat a wild plunge, you want to perfect your form or you just want to stand around and contemplate the whole experience for another 5 minutes before launching again, enjoy!