The waterfront path at my camp is the first thing I cleared after buying the land. It's lined with stumps, every 20 feet or so -- with foreign words on them. You may be stumped by this! Let me explain. Some people are content to look at a pretty scene. I want to feel it. … Continue reading Stumped? I’m Finnish!
I've always been aware of the moon -- its phase, its arc, its pull. Even more so here at Camp Many Moons! I gave this place its name for three reasons. 1. It was the nickname my brother gave me. 2. It suggests a Native American connection. 3. I want the retreat we've developed here … Continue reading (Many) Moons
May 16, 2020. I have to write. I write for therapy and clarity. Sometimes I don't know what I think (or feel) until I write it down. I've been unable to write since retiring young, five years ago. Something inside was stuck in psychological mud. The mud-clog is easing now as I sit on the … Continue reading Writing on the Waterfront
May 15, 2020. Shots are ringing out across the bay...continually, for about 30 minutes. Next, a staccato of six shots. Most likely a hunter doing target practice. In the Navy, I achieved the status of “sharpshooter” on the target range and wore the ribbon on my uniform to prove it. But I am so grateful I … Continue reading Seeking Peace, Hearing Gunshots
May 10, 2020. All species have their own nature, don’t they? And Siberian Huskies need to run. I found a new way to exercise him at camp: let him “pull” the four-wheeler! He took to it quickly and loves to go into a full-on gallop (something he can't do when we ski together). I worry … Continue reading A Husky’s Nature – Human Nature
April 1, 2020. This is the view from my camper window as the ice starts to crack open near the shoreline. An otter just scooted by! It must have come up through the crack in the ice. It made me giggle. So smooth in the water, it looks rather clumsy on land. It reminded me … Continue reading When Ice Cracks, Life Emerges
Jan. 13, 2019. Who does an outdoor campfire on a snowbound winter night? Hardy northerners do. Because sounds are fewer, they're magnified. The ice is cracking loudly a few feet away while the fire pit crackles away at my feet. And although I can’t hear it, I know the home-made wood stove is also crackling in … Continue reading Crackling Fire, Cracking Ice
Dec. 23, 2017. The papers are signed. I am the proud owner of 300 feet of waterfront on Huron Bay in the Western Upper Peninsula. Just in time for Christmas! Within hours of my text ("It's mine!"), Jeff arrived with his heavy equipment to start creating a road through the rugged bush. I followed him … Continue reading And So It Begins
For Many Moons 