Sailing into Summer

“History will judge us by the difference we make in the everyday lives of children”. 

Nelson Mandela

Almost everyone had a special teacher who had a significant impact on their life. Mine was Mrs. Lenz, my grade 5 and 6 teacher. She helped me come out of my shell without ever forcing me to talk. Instead, she boosted my self-esteem and made me feel like she really wanted to hear what I had to say.

The teacher whose classroom I’ve been volunteering in is retiring this year after 30 years of being that teacher for many, many students. It’s been such a pleasure to watch not only how effective she is as a teacher, but how much her students adore her. I overheard a few of the grade one boys talking about how much they love her and how sad they are that she won’t be coming back next year.

Kim’s mom, who is 88, was also a teacher for many years, and still volunteers regularly in the school and volunteer tutors kids after school (Kim’s daughter is attending teacher’s college so will continue the family teaching tradition).

I attended Kim’s retirement party this weekend and felt very out of touch because I recognized almost none of the music, despite the fact that nearly everyone else (of all ages) was singing along. My musical literacy is stuck somewhere in the 80s.

Ray crews on a sailboat for Wednesday race nights, along with Captain Paavo, and crew mates Julia and Joanne. I got to join them last weekend for the Commodore’s Sail Past, an annual tradition to mark the start of sailing season. It was the Yacht Club’s 60th anniversary, so they chose a sixties theme.

Normally, the boats go out in a designated order and must maintain their position in line as they pass the Commodore’s boat, with the crew saluting as they pass. Because the winds were so strong, they announced prior to our departure that there was no requirement to stay in order. Some captains decided not to go out, but those that did got a wild ride.

The wind blasted. The boat heeled. Fun was had.

At the BBQ afterwards, our boat was awarded the prize for best-decorated (that’s a peace-sign flag behind Ray). Since we’d already won a prize, they didn’t consider us for best costumes, but the couple who did win were dressed as Thurston and Lovey Howell from Gilligan’s Island, which was a very clever spin on the 60s idea. Wish we’d thought of it as we had just the right number and gender allocation on our crew (I’d have been Mary-Anne, of course).

The captain asked when I was last on a sailboat and I said it must have been at least 15 years. The next day one of those 15 years ago today posts popped up on Facebook from our sailing trip in Turkey, so apparently it had been exactly 15 years. The pics were from my favourite sailing memory…actually one of my favourite life memories. We anchored overnight in Wall Bay and the next morning a floating bakery came by selling fresh bread and pastries.

This weekend, Ray and I cycled along the rail trail to see a heron rookery he’d come across earlier this spring. We were disappointed because it initially looked like the nests were empty, but ten minutes later, herons started swooping back to the nests, the chicks stood up, and it got much noisier. I guess we’d arrived during the pre-lunch nap time.

Aside from the herons, we saw various birds, snapping turtles, normal turtles, and deer.

Nick and Meg also see wildlife on their bike rides…the kind that get your heart beating faster and your feet pedalling harder.

I thought our 30 km cycle to see the herons was a nice workout, but Nick and Meg camped up near Squamish this weekend and did a 120 km cycle on Saturday. Not such a big deal for Nick, but Megan joined him, and that’s a pretty impressive feat for someone who hasn’t spent months training for a triathlon. Technically, Megan cycled 104 kms to the brewery, then let Nick cycle the last 16k on his own, and drive back to pick her up. Very sensible decision.

In other news, my niece graduated from Sheridan College in Animal Care, something she’s always been very passionate about.

Note: many of the photos in this post have been blatantly stolen from other people.