Farewell Saskatchewan Winter for Another Season

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You definitely have your beautiful moments, Saskatchewan, Canada, and there is something very peaceful and restful about your winter months, which allow us to slow down a bit, watch movies, read books, and me, perhaps play a little more guitar, as there are no lawns to cut, no gardens to tend to, and no compelling urge to be outside every day just to enjoy your beautiful Saskatchewan sunshine and extensive “living skies”. The vast spaciousness of this province alone is a thing of beauty. We have tried and failed on many occasions to convey to our Asian friends the possibility of driving down a country road in our province for twenty minutes without seeing another vehicle or any sign of human habitation - an incomprehensible concept in Asia, where in Indonesia alone, 260 million people live.

We have come to appreciate this aspect of Canada greatly, particularly since living overseas in relatively crowded conditions for extended periods of time every year. And a winter's landscape with every tree covered in rhinefrost is truly magical. But we have slowed down enough now, and the tropical climates are again calling us. We need to feel the wind again on our faces riding our motor bikes along the ocean in Thailand, or among the rice paddies of Bali. The deep blue waters are again inviting us to return for more diving adventures, and my tongue yearns to speak the foreign languages once again, just as my guitar yearns to accompany me sharing stories in that universal language of music, and our hearts yearn to see those genuinely open, welcoming Asian faces.

It is somewhat of a paradox that the very aspect of life in Asia which most attracts us - the vibrancy of multitudes of people living life, for the most part, openly - dining or selling merchandise in the streets or in shops without walls - is what eventually arouses a yearning also to return to our peaceful, largely underpopulated, vast and beautiful homeland.

So farewell again, Regina,Saskatchewan, Canada, our culturally rich and wonderful hometown, until we return to witness the fresh awakening of springtime on the prairies in May.

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Comments

[Carole Taylor]

Bon voyage!
Bonne nouvelle année et bonne aventure, Bev et Stan. J’ai hâte à vous suivre par le bias de ce journal.