The Waterfall

... barefooted Glen making the waterfall ...

 I wanted to take the snake grass out of the rocks at the point where the stream crosses under the road and falls down to the railroad track.

As I was working on that project I was moving sand around so that it wouldn’t plug the culvert and soon I was imagining a space there where there would be a small waterfall.

I asked Glen how to make waterfalls.

... Hannah Pilling learning to drink from the stream ...

Previously I have tried to do that in a stream and all I get it a line of rocks with water flowing freely through the cracks.

“Landscape fabric,” he said. “Just line the inside with landscape fabric. I have some at my house if you have none.”

A few days later I could hear commotion down at the stream.

Hannah is being coached on how to climb the rocks.
"Let her hands do the climbing."

Little voices just talking and playing.

I went to check out what was happening, and Glen was down in the stream with a shovel, a rake and some landscape fabric.

Landon and Piper had joined him as well as Alice, Michael and Betty.

Not everyone needs five children under 7 at their feet while they are moving rocks and laying down landscape fabric.

Landon got in the stream to help until his feet hurt from chilblains.

I don’t think he had felt that before.

Piper Pilling with Canada Day Face painting beside her eye

“Let your feet warm up in the sun and they will go away,” said his grandfather whose own bare-feet were in the stream.

“You have a feature there that other people pay one million dollars for,” said Jeremy as his family strolled down the road on their way to the beach an hour later.

“We are just finishing up here,” said Glen and are on our way to join you at the beach.

In the meantime I got to watch all five kids run across the stream, splash in the puddles of mud on the road from the storm the day before, and chat with each other about the relative pleasures of work vs. play.

Landon Pilling offering to help his grandfather

Their grandfather told us that they have a family saying about work.

If you snooze, you loose.

I took that to mean that the fun is out there in environment for those who want to build waterfalls and change the course of streams.

Arta

Working on a new vision

Connor and Glen Pilling

Cutting out a step through a log for easier beach access

On Preparing the Shady Camp

July 20, 2018

I was in the Slacker Zone this morning. I had watered the new grass and thought I would rake out the area under the slacker line, for after cutting out some of the boxwood, there were still rough roots that some who falls off the line might hit. I came upon a stump I could not work out with my pitch fork. While thinking that I would move on and leave it until someone came who could tug on it harder than I could, I heard Glen’s voice calling, “Hello. Can I borrow your extension ladder?” I asked what job he was doing.

“Cleaning the garbage out of the second large camping area, the one that gives shade. My main purpose is to put up a No Tresspassing sign there, for people have been coming in, camping and leaving their garbage there.”

“Fine. Can I bring the kids and come along?”

“Feel under no obligation. I am not asking for help. You don’t need to come.”

“But I want to.”

Betty, Alice and I pulled the red wagon along the lakeside road of the railroad tracks and joined Landon, Piper, Connor and Glen.

Piper Hicks picking up precious beach-worn glass
to give to her grandmother as a gift.

By the time we got there a lot of work had been done. A huge pile of garbage from under the trees was now in a pile. Actually two piles of garbage, one to the left of me and one to the right. Laynie was pulling trees out of the forest that Glen had already felled. She was stacking them by the side of the water so that we can burn them in the fall. She said that there would be an open work policy. Do whatever you wish to clean the beach. Piper was busy collecting all of the beautiful broken glass, the greens, the browns, the blues, the clear glass. She was putting it in a pile to give to her grandmother.

The wish list already made before Miranda and I got there:

1. Providing shade – This was one of the major reasons for cleaning the camp up. The beach has been virtually inaccessible between 11 am and 5 pm because of the extreme heat with no shade except that provided by umbrellas for those who can stay under them. Laynie had watched her kids in only partial shade over there and had sunburns on the tops of her feet. We checked as we worked to see when it would become too hot in this spot. At 1 pm we were still working in the shade. Then the afternoon moved on and when early evening came there was still lots of shade back in the trees. This is a perfect place for the family where the mom likes to watch kids from the shade. And the beach is beautiful. The only drawback is no cement boat launching pad to use to walk into the water with. I have a pair of beach shoes from Trish and Jack which are working for me in this new spot.

2. A place for a swing: we have a ladder from the Slacker Line Kit which we can’t seem to find a place for on Lot 4. So either this ladder or a bigger tire swing when available would really work on one of the limbs of the Douglas Forest Tree that is at the edge of this camp. The tree towers above everything else and there is a tall limb there that screams out ladder or swing.

... making a sand castle with a bucket ...

3. Steps over the large log that was prohibiting easy access to the beach: this was accomplished when Glen took a chain saw and cut out a piece that would make a step.

Seeing it was too tall for me, he made two other steps, one up and one down, that I can negotiate.

Then Glen and Connor did in-fill with gravel and sand to make this a lovely place all of us began to use.

... Glen, using the chain saw, to remove
sharp edges from the log children walk on ....

4. Transformation of a long piece of drift wood that the children were already walking on, into a safe long piece, since the scars of tree limbs long gone are still on the main trunk.

Glen clipped off the knobs that would tear at the skin of little people who fell off and he cut off a jilldarm, he said.

I asked him how to spell that.

He said he didn’t know. It was not the long branch that went perpendicular to the trunk.  It was the tiny pokes left in the ground that foresters trip over.

Google didn’t help me with a definition.

... Miranda capturing children able to play in the shade ...

5. Placement of a No Trespassing Sign / Private Signs – Glen is torn over putting these signs up. LaRue leases the land along the railroad track, along which we drive to access this space.

Formerly, this space has been available to all. 

On my recent trip there a couple of weeks ago, I pulled garbage out to the beach that had been left back in the trees: a broken lounge chaise, assorted plastic water toys/mattresses, water wings, bags of plastic cups. I was wondering if I should ask Dave to come down and get the rubbish, but it seems unfair to ask him to always hall away trash that belongs to others.

6. Disposal of a long 2 “ rusty chain that is a hazard to children. The metal chain/rope is buried deep in the sand. Connor worked for a long time digging it out of the shoreline. It was too deep for him to succeeded.

... one pile of trash left by
 thoughtless campers at this spot ...

7. Final placement of the blue dock with its anchor and newly purchased ladder for easier access. It only makes sense to put it down the beach, some yards away from the long dock we now use.

8. Moving the fire pit down to the beach area, instead of having it in the trees – a fire precaution.

9. A map for children that lets them know the lovely places along the beach.

From left to right while looking at the water?

The Willow Beach, The Healing Circling, The Ramp Camp, the Little Canadian Stream, the Shady Camp, an unnamed stream which is now only 3 small trickles of water, the Sandy Beach, and the 49 Sign on the Railroad. That is going to be a map drawn by many children.

 Like the "woods" in The Adventure of Christopher Robin, perhaps?

... signs to go up on trees ...

I wanted to also take a walk/swim to the 49 Sign so that I could see if it was still there, since I remember my dad pointing out to me that the property is some yards to the west of that sign. Bonnie and I did that with Michael, Alice and Amir. Amir walked when he got to the stream before Sandy Beach. All three of us ran into a number of huge boulders that are on the projection before Sandy Beach – all with hurts to different parts of our bodies.

Swimmers beware at this point.

... campfire up in trees ...

... time for fire safety and get this
campfire out of the woods and onto the beach ...

At the 49 sign on the railway I stop.

What does that mean?

49 miles to where?

 Revelstoke?

I can hear my dad pointing to that sign and saying, “The property ends here,” and with a sweep of his right arm and a drip of his right wrist, he points out the exact place to me. My best guess is halfway through Sandy Beach, though I have no idea.

... learning to balance on the log ...
LtoR:Michael (6), Alice (4), Landon (7 )Betty (3)

I told Bonnie that Glen might have a better idea of where it is, but if I ask he would probably say, “Who cares. We have no neighbours from there to the outskirts of Sicamous, and no neighbours east going up Larch Hills.”

Yes, who cares since all of us are only caretakers.

Arta

Souvlaki at the Pillings

A couple of days ago I sat at the Pilling’s table watching Glen cut up a leg of lamb for souvlaki. Janet and Laynie were preparing the marinade at the kitchen counter. “Come over for supper on Wednesday,” Laynie said.

So with that invitation, David, Ceilidh and I arrived at their house at 7 pm tonight. Piper and Landon ate with us – we listened to Greek folk tunes, we wrapped the lamb in the pita bread, we drank Kombucha (the new wonder drink), we plated up Greek salad and we sat in the warm evening wind and watched the dark clouds gather as the evening went on.

“What is your favourite part of the lake,” said Glen, “starting from youngest to oldest." Ceilidh was quick to say family. Just family. The lake is where she feels the essence of family.

Laynie said it is the memories that mean so much to her.

“Acceptance,” said Janet. “This is where I feel acceptance.”

“Private,” said Glen.

“That is important to you,” said someone else.

“It is the privacy of family – extended family. I don’t mean my own privacy. What I like is that the spaces are not public – that we don’t have waves of car after car going past.”

I was last. “It’s cyclical nature. That is what I like. The same experiences recur again and again. I wait for that.”

The evening closed with ice-cream: double chocolate; raspberry cheesecake; maple walnut or frozen blueberry yogurt.

“We are not the ice-cream parlour that you will find next door,” said Glen.

It felt like it to me.

Arta

Dabbin'

Mary was telling me a story about her children and she said one of them uses the newest dance move: dabbin'.

I asked for a demo so she gave me one.

I tried to do it myself: head tucked down in one arm and the other arm stretch straight out and back.

 ... Mary and Arta practise dabbing ...

I didn't think much of this until we had Reading Club and I was studying Landon.

At one point he did well on the word families and was congratulated.

 ... Landon shows the dabbing move with class ...

He performed the dabbing move.

Where do little Grade I-er's learn these moves.

When I brought it up with his mother, she didn't know what dabbin' is all about.

Do kids learn it on the playground at recess?

We certainly aren't teaching it at reading club, though it is being performed there.

Arta

The First Annual Reading Club Christmas Party

... a typical child's meal ...

Wyona hosted The First Annual Reading Club Christmas Party.

Five year olds who have been learning to read were invited to bring their favourite volume to read.

The audience sat in wrapped wonder as the little ones read their chosen chapbook, first giving the audience the story, and then they got to choose one page and read it backwards.

... the beloved creche from the Phillipines ...

That is, starting at the period in a sentence and going backwards to the capital of that sentence.

What a daring way to test them! Do they really know these words when they don’t have sentence context to back them up.

There were gifts at the end of the readings.

... homemade chilli for the adults ...

All of the readers got two packets of Phonics Learning Flash Cards.

Cheers went up!

Then they were gifted with five Primary Phonics workbooks that Laynie had xeroxed.

More cheers. And cheers for the beautiful 3 ring zippered binders that Charise had donated.

... Landon and Michael sit side-by-side ...

Next came 2 packages of magnetic pictures and words to be put on fridges.

At that Landon got up and did a victory dance.

The loot was coming in.

Next came a spiral binder full of more word games.

More cheers!

Hannah Pilling
 ... youngest member at the Reading Club Party ...

Two small tables were set up in the entry way, surrounded by chairs.

That is where the readers club members and their friends enjoyed their meal together.

Wyona had small glasses out for them – they could choose their drink and their glass.

... dessert -- ju-jubes ...

Some of the choices were goblets; other choices were different colours of shot glasses that seemed to be bent and unstable but which didn’t fall over.

 ... Audra, the evenings best child tender ...

Chocolate milk was a first choice of beverage; orange crush was a close second.

As with other festive occasions hosted by Wyona, what her small guests ate was entirely up to them.

dessert -- sour soothers

Audra sat at the table with them, and kept the conversation going.

Most of them have attended birthday parties together, or have met each other at the beach, so they were at least passingly familiar with each other.

If something can go wrong at a party, it will.

dessert - bones

At this event, Wyona’s kitchen sink backed-up.

Tonia’s recent experience with a similar problem tells her to call the city first, but the men wanted to at least get the sink semi-functional.

Tim Oldham, Jeremy Pilling and Richard Johnson all took their turns analyzing, augering, taking out the p-trap or running to Home Depot for another part or a tool rental.

dessert - cheesies

I think there were 19 at the party.

Space was at a premium.

Imagine yourself either in the kitchen or the living room; there are only small isles through which to walk.

disgusting -- dried, candied rhubarb

If you pass someone, both of you must turn sideways. Everywhere else in the room there were Christmas decorations: the tree was decorated; garlands were hanging from the windows; musical toys were being pressed and playing their melodies; the crèche was being arranged and rearranged; gifts were spilling out from under the tree; and the Yule log was playing on a T.V. channel.

Piper, a potential candidate for next year's club
note her off-centred beverage glass

The gift of being able to read.

Time to bow my head and say “God bless them, everyone.”

Arta

Two boys, two puddles

... a stroll back up to the house ...

For people under three, there is a long, long trail a-winding from where they are on the road.  They need to reach the place where their parents, aunts and uncles, cousins, even grandparent.  Yes, a long, long trail when you are only three.

Michael doesn’t know his own way there yet.

Or if he does, he is too afraid to take the journey.

He doesn’t feel that fear running around the yard though.

Two puddles down, one to go.

I see him running in grand circles, up to the raspberry patch, down to the bottom of the creek, up the stairs, and then under the porch to the back door of the house, then up the stairs, and then he begins the loop again.

"I am going to need help, Dad.
It looks scary down there."

I like imagining that some day he will be running the whole 50 acres in the same way.

Right now one of the best places on the property is mud puddles.

Not for the parents, but for the boys who have on their boots. I think Landon required a full change after not only stomping in the puddle, but slipping and falling.

What else is boyhood for?

"Not in the creek ... I want to go over the creek."

Getting down into the stream is also pretty scary.

Richard had to lead the way and show them that it is a good place to clean the mud off of boots.

Not that cleaning that mud off is important to the boys, but how do they know unless a parent tells them.

"I will try going down first."

Laynie and I were on the other side of the stream.

Landon decided not to go into the stream, but to step right over it.

There are some things women with cameras can’t capture, because they are too busy grabbing little hands and helping dreams like stepping over a stream come true.

With my camera, I did capture Richard with both hands full, and little boys leaning on him for support, though I couldn’t catch his words of encouragement: come on boys, you can do it!

I have got to learn how to turn on the video component of that camera!

Maybe on another day.

Arta

Two little boys and a big lake

... one last splash of water on Richard's face before leaving for Calgary ...
a cherry tree droops in the foreground

Before they left for home, Richard, Michael and Alice strolled down to the beach for one last good-bye to the water while Miranda did that one last run through the house to see what else should go in the car, but hadn’t made it there.

I followed them soon with my camera and Laynie, Landon and Piper came along as well.

... hurrying, hurrying, hurrying ...
... these boots were made for walking ...

Each time I am down there, I am wishing I had a long pole to stick in the ground so that I can tie the cherry tree to it and let that leading branch stretch upward.

But the pole would have to be nine feet tall now, the tree has grown so much.

Of course the morning sun was flashing on the water and the shadows in the long ripples of the water make it look as though there are striations along the surface of it.

"Look, our shadows walked into the water!"

The two little boys started out in their rain boots.

They don’t have the sense yet, that it is OK to kick off the boots and run for the water.

In fact, they haven’t learned how to find the good sticks to beat the water with, nor do they know that they can pick up any rock on the beach and give it a toss. They spend a lot of time looking for just the right rock.

... a good stone found underwater ...

They are the perfect example of side by side play. When one of them begins a task, the other tries to follow, but by the time they get set up, the first one has gone on to some other important job that can only happen down by the water.
David Camps Johnson has given Michael some t-shirts that are too small for him. They are too small by 2 sizes for David, and too big for Michael by 2 sizes. The gap makes it look like Michael is wearing a knee length tunic with shoulder seams that droop well over the cap of his arm.

I am growing into my cousin David's shirt.

Laynie has brought snacks.

Apples for the boys and girls.

That first bite into the apple, the breaking of the skin is still a major task for the boys and they wish that their parents would help out, but Richard and Laynie coach the boys to try hard. Independence comes in such short steps.

... hey, there is a red ant here ...  red ants are dangerous ...

The water is high, just barely going down now after the spring run off.

I don’t know why it seems like a miracle that it is so clear, since I get that feeling every year, but there it was again for me, the miracle of that beautiful clear water.

The gift of life: water.

Arta

A Walk to the Beach

A Photo Essay 

by Laynie Hicks 

fifth-generation boys in rubber boots
...taking a look at the new path of the stream...

"You mean we are allowed to scramble over those rocks to find fish in there?"

... and the train beeped its horn ...
or
...Gone Fishing...

Hey!  I want to get out and walk too.

I am allowed to walk into the water without taking my jeans off?
Cool.

Baby Alice's second year to the beach