I am a weak Canadian.
I am a complete wuss when it comes to the cold. Less like a polar bear, and more like a sun-loving orchid. Some people feel like they've been born into the wrong body... I was born into the wrong climate.
I think my disdain for the cold stems from the fact that my childhood home seemed to be located at the Hell's Gate of winter.
The wind. It was insane. It could appear to be a blizzard at our house when just over the road all was calm and well.
The snow. It was relentless.
Waiting for the bus was like being in a torture chamber for me. First of all, I hate wearing layers. Second of all, I hate the cold. This combination was awful for me.
Enter summer! When summer arrives, it’s like I get a case of winter amnesia. Washed away are my hateful thoughts about salt-stained shoes, frozen cheeks, shovelling snow, falling on ice and delayed flights. Gone are my considerations of moving to a tropical island. Magically, Nova Scotia is transformed into the most wonderful place to be.
Seeing as we celebrated Father's Day recently, I will weave my enigma of a dad into this piece. Dad is a guy who usually takes the road less travelled - figuratively and literally. He has explored most every back road (both paved and dirt) in Nova Scotia (at an astonishingly slow speed).
As kids, when other families were hitting Disney World or the CN Tower, we were driving around the Maritimes, scoping out the not-so-common sights.
With egg salad sandwiches and cookies in the cooler, we would head off to parts unknown. Our car would be packed so tight, you barely had to wear a seatbelt.
The sounds in the car also were not what a kid might be dying to hear. There were no audio tapes or video screens. Dad would blare Sean Dunphy, Anne Murray or Elvis Presley from the tape deck.
We counted licenses plates and big trucks for entertainment. You’d surely get a heavy elbow if your sleepy head fell upon your sibling. 'Are we there yet' was the most frequently asked question.
My dad is from Cape Breton, and it was often a destination for us. The Margarees. Doyle's Bridge for a dip, Whale Cove Beach, Margaree Harbour Beach, Egypt Falls and campfires with cousins.
The Cabot Trail. Fortress of Louisburg, The Skyline Trail, Usiage Ban Falls, Alexander Graham Bell Museum, Ingonish, The Lone Shieling, and Fishing Cove Hike.
We also went did the South Shore, the French Shore and the Annapolis Valley. Shubenacadie River Rafting along the way from Antigonish. The Ovens, Keji Park, Balancing Rock, Brier Island for whale watching, Ross Farm, farming exhibitions in Windsor, Bay of Fundy tides, Upper Clements Park, The Land of Evangeline, Annapolis Royal and Blomidon Park.
We did Prince Edward Island many times. That 75-minute ride on the ferry brought you to what felt like a dream world as a kid. Cavendish, Anne of Green Gables, Greenwich Park, Rainbow Valley, windmills in North Cape, Charlottetown and Cows Ice Cream.
New Brunswick was also covered from entrance to exit. Magic Mountain, The Rocks Park, Fundy National Park, Kouchibouguac Park, Reversing Falls, Campbellton for alpine slides and lots of covered bridges.
One time, we expanded the boundaries and hit The Gaspe Bay in Quebec. We stopped in Maine on the way back to get a piece for Dad’s canoe. Three weeks in a minivan. Until not that many years ago, I thought the border agents could hear into our car when approaching the border.
Seeing as I have more time on my hands, I've gone back to my childhood and took a few road trips over the past few weeks with Ma and Pa. Closed restauants had us bringing along the cooler equipped with egg salad sandwiches and cookies.
We did parts of Cape Breton and the South Shore. We hit Creignish Mountain, explored the bowels of Mabou, strolled Inverness Beach in search of seaglass, saw Gaspereaux fishing in Margaree, Point Michaud Beach (where we found oodles of sand dollars), Bachman's Beach, crossed the La Have River on the ferry, Crescent Beach, Risser's Beach, and Lunenburg.
With COVID-19 causing us to stay put and not be jetting off to foreign locations, it seems we should all be taking a page from good old Leonel's book. Explore all of the beauty that's right at your fingertips.
A favourite author of mine said, “The difference between an ordinary life and an extraordinary one is only a matter of perspective. Pull the blinds back. Look around you. It is a weird and wonderful world and you do not require a 10-digit bank account to immerse yourself in it.”
I'm a firm believer in the notion that life isn't about what happens to you - it is how you respond to what happens to you. If you're bored during COVID - you're boring.
With the sun shining, I'm going to focus on what my dad taught me to be - curious about the world around me.
With an insatiable love for human behaviour and circumstance, Emilie Chiasson absorbs the world around her, and turns her experiences into relatable stories. From her home town of Antigonish, N.S,, to her travels around the world, she never fails to connect with the characters and perspectives that make life a bit more colourful. Read more.
