The Rural Voice, 2003-01, Page 8"Our experience
assures lower cost
water wells"
103 YEARS' EXPERIENCE
Member of ,Canadian
and Ontario
Water Wet Associations
• Farm
• Industrial
• Suburban
• Municipal
Licensed
by the Ministry
of the Environment
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10
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WINGHAM
Serving Ontario Since 1900
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CANADA
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- 479 MacEwan Street, Goderich • N7A 4M1
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4 THE RURAL VOICE
Carol Riemer
Warming up to winter
Carol Riemer
is a freelance
writer who
lives with her
husband and
two
children near
Grand
Valley,
Ontario.
One quick glance through a frosty
kitchen window in January is enough
to convince me that winter is still
with us.
Gone are the bright, festive lights
of the holiday. Those scarlet red
ribbons, once firmly affixed to the
fenceposts, are starting to look a little
ragged and worn. And the icy wind
that rips through the rails of our old
cedar fence, continues to race across
the frozen fields on its way, into town.
Some nights, when the moon
lights up the countryside, and I can't
get to sleep, I start to think about all
the winters that have come and gone.
I remember the year my husband and
I struggled to build an ice rink in the
backyard, only to have it promptly
disappear beneath a ton of snow.
Afterwards, we discovered that, in
sloping the icy surface down toward
the house, life quickly became an
uphill battle. But, we persevered.
That winter, our children not only
teamed how to skate, but they also
came to appreciate the challenges
imposed by certain vertical and
horizontal limits.
Later, I recall sitting on a cold,
hard bench in the arena, proudly
watching them skate, and waving
encouragement from the sidelines
with one hand while balancing, in the
other, a cup of coffee so hot, it could
have set off the fire alarm.
In those days, the kids outgrew
their skates only marginally faster
than their snow suits, so we were
constantly on the lookout for
replacemetts. I've often wondered
what happened to all those missing
mitts, toques and scarves. Some-
where, at the bottom of a bin, in some
long -forgotten lost and found, must
lie a decade's worth of winter wear,
neatly inscribed with their names, a
misplaced tribute to a mother's
undying dedication.
Still, some things remain. Etched
in my memory is the year our young
daughter, driven by a sudden attack
of cabin fever, decided to combat
boredom by carving her name into
the headboard of her bed. And the
following winter, when our son added
to my anxiety level by trying to untie
a giant knot in his skate laces — on
the diningroom table.
And though the weather may be
unpredictable, winter, as I remember
it, will always be the same. Frosted
windows, blowing snow, an inch of
ice on the windshield, mailboxes
frozen shut, lost gloves, and wet
boots. It's the season of frozen locks,
icicles hanging precariously from the
eaves, a jug of antifreeze sitting by
the back door, driveways that
resemble skating rinks, and skating
rinks that threaten to melt at the first
sign of an early thaw. It's the flashing
blue light on the plough, as it makes
another late night run down the next
concession, and it's the word
"thermal” that can be found on
almost everything you wear.
Winter can also be a time to focus
on those things that make life
worthwhile: something as simple as a
new seed catalogue, flannel sheets, or
a down comforter; the tempting
aroma of freshly brewed coffee and
warm blueberry muffins, just out of
the oven; winter birds at the feeder; a
hot shower; clothes warm from the
dryer; and evenings spent curled up
in front of a flickering fire, sharing a
huge bowl of popcorn, and watching
an old movie.
When you think about it, warming
up to winter really isn't that hard to
do. It just takes a positive outlook, a
little dedication, and the
unwavering belief that spring is just
around the corner.
For better or worse, it's a lot like
marriage. Something that's best taken
one day at a time.0
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