Daytripping May-June 2021 Issue

Lake Huron
The
Daytripper
Our 2nd section starts in NORTH MIDDLESEX, AILSA CRAIG, PARKHILL...
MI
SHOP
NY
LOCAL
ONTARIO
Parkhill
From a drive in the country
to a weekend at the cottage,
we have everything you need.
269 Parkhill Main Street
Ailsa Craig
Your Local “One Stop Shop”
Monday to Wednesday 8-5
Thursday-Friday 8-6 • Saturday 9-5
519-293-3202
257 Main St.
PARKHILL
519-294-07525
In our Retro Parlour atmosphere, enjoy...
32 FLAVOURS OF ICE CREAM
~ Blasts ~ Soft Serve ~ Smoothies
~ Frozen Yogurt ~ Milkshakes
Pre-order Your Ice Cream Cake
North Middlesex Farmers’ Market
June 11th
June 19th
July 3rd
July 24th
Over 40 Years in Clay!
Pottery & gallery set within a
friendly village atmosphere.
Unique work featuring
Pavlo, Hilborn &
Marilyn Barbe.
Specializing in one of a
kind gifts for any occasion.
115 Ness St, Ailsa Craig
519-293-3339
TUESDAY–SUNDAY 11–5
www.ailsacraigvillagepottery.com
Beef & Lamb Custom Cut & Wrapped
3900 Elginfield Road, Parkhill
519-293-3000
Donald Hughes
Annex Museum
& Walker
Research Room
5:00pm-8:00pm
8:30am-12:30pm
8:30am-12:30pm
8:30am-12:30pm
Visit the Market
on these dates at
229 Main Street
Parkhill
www.northmiddlesex.ca
Quality Dining
Quality Whisky
Open 7 Days
a Week
Unique Gifts from Local Artisans
Whimsy
Salon & Gifts
Tuesday to Saturday
145 Main St., Ailsa Craig
519-520-9055
Full Service Family Hair Care
A Touch c
of Country
220 Ailsa Craig Main Street
519-878-6881
Bed & Breakfast
Family and Weekend Rates
August 7th
August 21st
Sept. 4th
Sept. 18th
143 Ailsa Craig Main Street
theCrownAndTurtlePub.com
8:30am-12:30pm
8:30am-12:30pm
8:30am-12:30pm
8:30am-12:30pm
Ye Olde Towne Hall
Parkhill Carnegie Gallery
Looking
forward until
we can
meet again.
160 Main Street, Ailsa Craig
www.friendsofyeoldetownehall.org
Maple Syrup
Maple Butter
Maple Sugar
Local Art
Show & Sales
Concerts
Exhibits
Drop-in
Classes
Workshops
233 Main St.,
Parkhill
Store Open
7 Days a Week
9 am to 5 pm
New ONLINE STORE! Visit us Saturdays
www.fortrose.ca at Strathroy Market
Pick up or we can ship. Retailer List Online
27382 Coldstream Road • 519-232-9041
160-D AILSA CRAIG MAIN STREET
www.ailsacraigartscentre.ca
ailsacraigartscentre@gmail.com
AILSA CRAIG ARTS CENTRE
Graveyard Friends: Finding New Community
Since last spring, my neighbour and
I have been walking for an hour most
mornings so we can check the “exercise
completed” box off on our lock-down
to-do lists.
In the midst of pandemic fog, the
weeks blend into each other, so I
welcome this small window of structure
in the day. We walk in the grounds of
a London city jewel, Mount Pleasant
Cemetery.
We go most days, rain, shine, or
snow and talk about all subjects great
and small: the books we read, the TV
shows we watch, what was on the news
with Lisa LaFlamme the night before,
our volunteer jobs, nature shows and
amazing animal behaviour, past travel
adventures, tackling awkward social
situations, and where to find stuff on
sale.
During the summer, groundskeepers
on their John Deeres would wave to
us as they navigated carefully among
the markers. One Zen staff member
meticulously hand-edged around all
the stones while classical music wafted
softly from his cart.
As the weeks of COVID turned into
Check our Facebook Page
for current hours
159 George Street, Ailsa Craig
519-854-7734
By Catherine Blake, London
months, we began to notice that this
place is really a Garden of Eden. In
spring we watched the magnificent
magnolia trees blossom and glisten in
the sunlight for a few precious days
before a wind shook the petals down
into a pink carpet. We were awed by the
huge, beautiful copper beech that stands
guard over the cemetery entrance when
it spread out its canopy of shimmering
green and purple leaves.
The flowers, including castor,
cosmos, sunflowers, and snapdragons
blossomed and then faded according to
their time. The squirrels and birds hop,
chirp, squawk, and swoop giving us a
soundtrack as we stroll.
We discovered that Shelley, one
of the groundskeeping staff, was a
walking encyclopedia on nature and
happily answered our questions about
the staggering range of plants and
trees. She supplied us with a map to
find the Carolinian zone trees that are
especially rare—even for southwestern
Ontario—such as sassafras, Kentucky
coffee, Ohio buckeye, cucumber
magnolia, tulip, and the prehistoric
male and female Osage orange trees
with their knobby, vivid green fruit.
In the fall, the multihued leaves
looked more luminous and vivid every
day. In winter, all the trees look crisp
and starkly defined, like a black and
white Ansel Adams photograph. And
now we are back to spring with buds
and birds emerging again.
Most days we cross paths with our
new dog friends and their human
companions, always social distancing.
We met Lily, a beautiful, sleek, and softeyed
Dalmatian, and her human Peter
first. Peter zips around the pathways
on his mobility scooter while Lily easily
keeps up, hardly breaking a sweat. We
think it’s hilarious that Peter calls us the
“dames from the graveyard.” Peter grew
up in Hamburg, Germany and regaled
us with tales of seeing the Beatles at a
club there, and his adventurous travel
and path to Canada.
Bridget is a sprightly middle-aged
Springer Spaniel who knocks off three
circuits around the perimeter in the
time it takes us to do one. Her human,
Davina, on the other end of the leash,
keeps up with no problem. She stops to
chat and lets Bridget lean in for a quick
Daily Specials
Homemade
Frozen
Entrees
to Go
OPEN
Wed to Sun
10 to 2
Homemade
Decadent Desserts
visit. Bridget should get a job visiting at
retirement homes because who could
resist her soft fur and gentle, big eyes?
Katie, the Wheaten Terrier, looks
hilarious carrying her ever-present
stick like a stogie, a dead ringer for a
furry Fidel Castro. What a good girl!
Meanwhile, Richard, a perky and
sartorially splendid Brussels Griffon
in a Hudson’s Bay hoodie, easily wins
the best dressed award, even though
he seems to struggle a little to get used
to his matching yellow boots. But what
price fashion, eh Richard?
But these refreshing rambles are
not just about classy canines and
quiet contemplation. We slowly find
ourselves becoming part of another
community, one we may not have
encountered had it not been for
COVID. Community is formed in small,
stealthy steps. The usual connections
have been put on pause during this
pandemic, but thanks to these muted
paths, some tentative new ones are
forming.
Here at the cemetery we saunter
among the spirits, enjoying the fresh
air, the botanical bounty, and the smile,
wave, and wag of new-found friends.
“Though much is taken, much abides,”
as Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote, and we
are grateful.
Page 30
“Remember that motherhood is a beginning, not a destination.” (Unknown)
May-June 2021