Yearly Archives: 2011

Give me 24 hours and see what I can pack into it! 

On Sunday afternoon I left for Lafleche, Saskatchewan to make a final check of the house I am in charge of!  As executor, the accountability is mine in the final stretch.  Meanwhile my very capable sister keeps things in great shape. 

So, over 800 kilometers later – with a van load of materials and a house examined and ready (almost) for a full-time renter – I arrived home 24 hours later. 

I asked myself why I didn’t write this blog yesterday.  Perhaps there are some days just left as they are!  And so, as the evening wore on I wore out.

And now this morning I’m up and running.  Off to a funeral, to visit a lady in a manor, to oversee a survey, to work with a couple on financial planning and to sit in on a community committee on drug and alcohol awareness.  Should be a good day!

As executor for my father’s estate I have been in charge of a house he bought in Lafleche, Saskatchewan.  Due to some twists and turns in the estate we have not been quick to sell the house.  But the times are changing and the possibility is closer.

With that in mind, I ventured down to Lafleche following our morning service and potluck today.  The road was fairly empty and the trip uneventful. 

But stepping into the house has memories.  I often think we pass over, by and through our memories – leaving them behind.  Not so!  I realize not everything needs to be saved, but even a penned letter of little consequence soon reaches archival status in your mind. 

And so, as I make a last pass through the house I’m trying to be realistic.  In the next short while a renter is expected in the house.  The renter brings his own furniture, so we we will be “cleaning house.”  We can store some things but basically the garage sale/second hand route will be the final route for much of what is here.

I am not the only one experiencing this!  Some of our friends have completed their business life on main street.  Soon the building will be torn down.  Many treasures still remain shoved into distant corners of the building.   But the building will come down with the treasures hidden forever.  How do you adjust?  At some point we realize that treasure stored in heaven is much more important!

Nevertheless, I will miss some of this “stuff!”

This afternoon our supper was served as international cuisine.  Culture day permeated Kindersley today, and not the least of the culture was the cuisine from around the world.

Although the food included bannock and samosa, I was most intrigued by the vegetable tray set out by a Persian.  On it were strands of green shoots.  I had to ask!  The answer was simple – dill! 

Now, I should know that!  For years, when we had a garden, we grew dill.  Or rather, dill grew by itself.  In recent years dill has been a part of the canning of pickles. 

But somehow, this felt like the first time.  And perhaps it was – the first time I had eaten strands of dill just by themselves.  What a delight!  Tasted very good, and the aftertaste is not acrid or unpleasant.

Would I eat dill every day?  Probably not.  But next time it is offered, I will accept!

These last few days I’ve been at work by 7:00 in the morning.  Usually there is the exercise bike ride prior to that, the cleansing shower and the 5 minute ride to the other side of town.

Which reminds me to remind you that life is so much simpler in a small town.  Going across town is a mere minutiae of time.  Gas stations are bypassed.  The sunrise’s slow rise barely ascends during the drive.  Who wouldn’t want to live in small town?

Back to the early to rise thing!  My mind works best early in the morning.  I schedule my thinking time then.  And laugh when other colleagues arrive shaking off their rest in an effort to pop above the morning tide. 

And now, as the evening approaches, while my colleague is just coming alive, I’m descending to the depths of rest.  Unfortunately I’ll be bowling in a few minutes – hopefully I can see the pins! 

Early to rise – late to bed – may not work so well!!