The Rural Voice, 2003-02, Page 8PRICE, SERVICE
& SATISFACTION
2000 DODGE DAKOTA
SPORT CLUB CAB
V6, auto, air, aluminum
wheels, fibreglass tonneau
& boards. Only 30,000 kms.
Sold by us new. s9 9,900
1998 JEEP TS
4x4, stick, black, 2 tops, nice
shape. 93,900
2001 DODGE RAM
QUAD CAB
1500, V8, auto, SLT model,
boards, low kms., Sold by us
new. s27,900
1998 DODGE RAM
3500 Q1,1,601 CAB
4x4, dingd, dually,
leather, ed, low kms.,
immaculate s26,900
HANOVER CHRYSLER
DODGE JEEP
664 -10th St.,
Hanover
1-866-788-8886
Phone: (519) 364-3570
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CIIRYSLLR
CJs
Jeep
4 THE RURAL VOICE
Carol Riemer
Romancing the season
Carol Riemer
is a freelance
writer who
lives with her
husband and
two
children near
Grand
Valley,
Ontario.
It's February, and somewhere out
there, love is in bloom. Yet, despite
Cupid's best efforts, the romance of
the country might easily be lost,
buried somewhere beneath the
snowdrifts, frozen in intricate icy
patterns on the windowpane, or flung
far and wide across a wintry
windswept landscape.
I'm beginning to long for spring.
The merest whisper of warmth is all
it would take to loosen winter's
white -knuckled grasp, to coax the
purple grape hyacinth out from under
the melting snow, and banish the
pervasive cold that, all too often,
shoots shivers through this winter -
weary heart of mine.
I remember the snow that first fell
in November was light and fresh, cast
magically over the countryside like
the sparkle of Christmas glitter. But
now it weighs heavy, salted and
sanded, lining the roads with the tired
remnants of yesterday's storms. Salt
stains my boots, my gloves are worn
thin, and my snow -shovelling crew
has been reduced to one. Once
infatuated with winter, I must admit
that lately, my affection has waned.
Perhaps, it was the recent
appearance of a large brown rabbit
living under our deck that first
betrayed my secret yearning for
spring. Not exactly your typical
Easter bunny, this ragged, long -
toothed fellow has been subsisting
on a lacklustre diet of sunflower
seeds, scrounged from the bottom of
the bird feeder. The moment I step
out on the deck, he scampers away,
darting across a neighbouring field
and grumbling in annoyance at
having been disturbed. But I'm not
worried. Before long, he will return
to his favourite spot.
At first, having a resident bunny
underfoot seemed romantically
endearing.
"He's so cute," my daughter
would sigh, as she left more seed on
the ground than in the feeder.
But lately, I've been counting
footprints. Either this furry fellow is
in training, speeding around the yard
like an Olympic hopeful, or he has
friends and family staying with him.
The increasing number of rabbit
droppings, I suspect, does not bode
well.
' Along with the promise of spring,
also come warm thoughts of longer
days, brisk walks through the sugar
bush and the sweet taste of fresh
maple syrup, generously drizzled
across a heap of steaming hot
pancakes. For the dedicated gardener,
it's a good time to get a head start,
going over the latest seed catalogue,
sharpening tools, oiling a rusty old
shovel that had seen better days, or
going through the nursery guide for
planning this year's additions to the
garden.
After spending some time in the
shed, I'm always glad to come back
into the house for a little simmering
soup -crock comfort. A few well-
chosen videos on landscaping, tree
planting and deck board repair should
help keep me sufficiently motivated
while I clear a path to the kitchen
door, making my way past the coats,
boots, and assorted hand tools that
have come to grace our family's»
country winter life.
At the end of the day, there is
poetry in the last, lingering rays of
the setting sun, as they spill across a
rose -tinged sky. Looking out across
the landscape, I feel a special kind of
peace that only comes with time. To
be good at country living, you have to
love it. And to love it, you need to
know what it is that makes you stay.
Some days, this old place and the
dream of another season are all that
keep me here. Other times, 1 think it's
something more elusive: a
sentimental search for, what some
would call the romance of the
country.0