聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 Last week I took some holidays and headed for BC. I have family that lives on the island and we discovered I hadn鈥檛 been out there for nearly 20 years, so I felt like I was due for a visit.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 They have a beautiful place, which is within the city, but it is adjacent to a protected green area covered with walking trails through the trees. Now although I didn鈥檛 see bears or cougars, I was assured they were around and my uncle made the typical joke of, 鈥淗ow fast can you run?鈥� before we headed out, which I didn鈥檛 let him finish, saying, 鈥淚 think faster than you.鈥� I knew the joke would be that while hiking if we saw one that he just had to out run me.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The trip reinforced something that I had thought about myself, I don鈥檛 really like trees. Don鈥檛 get me wrong they鈥檙e beautiful and amazing with how tall they can grow, how different varieties grow differently. They鈥檙e really quite neat. But, I don鈥檛 like them in the sense that I鈥檓 completely surrounded by nothing but trees. I love the prairies. And my version of the prairies in particular, there鈥檚 sometimes too many trees around here for my taste.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Back home the most trees you saw were windrows, otherwise it was wide open. There鈥檚 something in that vast expanse of rolling hills broken only by a row of trees there or a group of trees here. And where I grew up that grouping of trees meant there was a farmyard there, it wasn鈥檛 just a group of trees like it is here.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The water too was beautiful and we went for a short walk to a waterfall. It was all gorgeous. But for me it鈥檚 a place to visit. To go to and see, to admire and enjoy; but, the prairies are home.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 People come out here and wonder about the beauty of Saskatchewan鈥檚 southern portion, which we鈥檙e by the Moose Mountains and it鈥檚 beautiful there. But there鈥檚 more beauty in Saskatchewan鈥檚 south as well. I grew up relatively near Grasslands National Park, so there wasn鈥檛 much but grasslands and cropland surrounding me.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 It was windy there quite often, which I actually find kind of funny when people here say it鈥檚 windy because usually it鈥檚 just a bit of a breeze in my opinion. But, one of my favourite things on the prairies is actually watching the wind blow the crops. I don鈥檛 know if you鈥檝e ever just sat and appreciated it, but tall grass or grain growing, it鈥檚 beautiful. The waves of the wheat ebbs and flows as if you were watching a small green or gold version of the ocean depending on the time of year and the growing seasons.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 One of my other favourite things to do greeted me the day after I returned. We had a fairly good thunderstorm. Now, big storms worry me when it comes to wind and hail, I hope the rain doesn鈥檛 come down too hard or fast in case of flooding, and I watch lightning strike hoping the ground is wet enough it doesn鈥檛 start a fire; but, I at the same time lightning storms are beautiful. The lighting dancing on the horizon, and without trees in the way you can see each strike from top to bottom. It鈥檚 flashes here and there, but as the dark sky lights up, it鈥檚 beautiful.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 We used to sit on our front stoop at the farm and just watch storms roll through. And you don鈥檛 get the full effect if you鈥檙e trying to watch that through the trees.
