July 21, 2019. Western Head, Nova Scotia. The Canoe.

Several years ago, Ken and I drove with Walt and Mary to see a man about business, and to go out for lunch in Shelburne. The man made canoes. Ken and I looked at his work and promptly commissioned him to build us a canoe. Two years later the canoe was delivered to the cottage. It was beautiful. Unfortunately, Ken had developed Parkinson's disease so getting in and out of a canoe was impossible so the beautiful boat stayed in the boat house. Last Spring we sold the cottage along with the contents, except for the beautiful canoe. It sat in the workshop. I gave Gill the canoe. She was pleased. Then reality raised its head. She can not manage the canoe by herself and she does not have enough space in her basement to keep the canoe inside. "The canoe is too beautiful to keep it outside," said Gill. She was keeping the kayaks outside. She and I discussed donating the canoe to the canoe club to be used as a fund raiser. I had asked Bryan about it and Gill had left a message with the president of the club. But no matter what, the canoe needed to come back to the workshop. George was to transport it. In conversation with Gill, George mentioned that he and Sheila would love to have a canoe now that they live on the river. The canoe now belongs to George. Ken would be pleased. We both loved George. He did our renovations and addition of the main house and built the Guest House, twice. He looks after the house now when anything needs to be done. It was a stroke of genius for Gill to give the canoe to George. George and Sheila will use it and love it. And they will keep it safe. Nothing better than a canoe to be used. Now I must go and see them in action on the Mersey River.