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Clerc Scar 2.106 July 2009
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Introduction The year 2000 would turn out to be a momentous year for my family. It all began in February 2000 when my 7-year-old son Dano and I flew to visit my parents in Tucson, Arizona. The weather was perfect, the skies bright blue, the breezes gentle and cool, and the outings to the Wild Horse Ranch and the Wild West theme park one big exciting adventure. Dano and I fell in love with the desert scenery, the Giant Saguaros, green and purple prickly pears, the Catalina Mountains and canyons, dry washes, desert grasses, and sightings of birds and animals in the wild. All this combined to make a unique habitat, one which would pull on the drawstrings of our hearts. After our return flight home, Dano and I shared our exciting adventures with Harvey who had opted to stay home. We began discussing the possibility of moving to Arizona. There were many good reasons to consider: my health needs, a warmer climate, a change of scenery, and something different. Harvey balked at the idea of quitting his job with United Dairy Industries of Michigan. But after he had time to think about his own health needs and the fact that his job most likely would be compromised with a pending company merger, he agreed to move us--lock, stock and barrel--to the wild, wild West that was Arizona. Once he agreed to move, things quickly started falling into place. Our lovely house on Lake Luwanna sold after being on the market for less than two days. The woman who purchased our home just happened to have a sister who lived near Sierra Vista, Arizona. When she found out that we were planning to move to Arizona and that we loved nature, she rushed home and brought back some brochures about the things to see and do in the Sierra Vista area, including the San Pedro Valley and Riparian Nature Preserve, the Ramsay Canyon preserve, the Huachuca Mountains and its many, many hiking trails, and old towns like Tombstone and Bisbee. What can I say? That appealed to us! Harvey and I felt that we were being led to Sierra Vista. For us, life has always been a walk in faith and was one grand and exciting adventure. Either that, or we were just plain crazy! The hardest part, of course, was leaving my two nearly grown daughters behind. Meilani "Lani" had graduated from high school the previous year and Jamie still had another year of high school left. Neither one of them wanted to leave their friends behind so they stayed in Lansing. Lani went to live with her father and Jamie moved in with her best friend Angel. The stage was now set for us to move to Arizona. All that was left to do was to put a new roof on our house that was "sold," close on our home, find a storage unit for our furnishings, squeak in a one-week American Association of the Deaf-Blind (AADB) conference in Columbus, Ohio, and, finally, purchase a brand-new pop-up camper. Now my mother could relax and not worry about bears attacking us in our tents out in the remote areas of the wild West! Oh yes, did I mention that we would be going on a cross-country camping trip to the Northwest, en route to our new home in Arizona? Well, our hope was to visit Harvey's two daughters, Theresa "Tessa" and Melanie "Claire," and his grandson, Cully, who live in British Columbia, Canada. After many delays, we finally said our goodbyes to family and friends and rolled out of Lansing, Michigan, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, August 10, 2000. Although we had estimated that our trip would take about four weeks, little did we know that we would not arrive in Arizona until 12 weeks later. But what a glorious and memorable trip we had! And this is what my story is all about, our first cross-country camping trip to the Northwest Pacific and to the Southwest. It was this trip that whetted our appetites and kindled our wanderlust for more exciting travels. There will be no settling us down until we can no longer move! So kick back or come along with us on our many wonder-loving adventures!
Chapter 1
After leaving Mackinac Island with a happy little boy in tow, we continued to head north on I-75. The terrain became more hilly and dotted with evergreen trees. Then it became more grassy as we approached the southern shore of Lake Superior. We decided to camp a couple nights at the Chippewa Bay Mills Landing instead of Brimley State Park. The landing was in a rustic and isolated area and was peaceful and quiet. It was also sandy. No matter how hard we tried to keep our camper clean, it was impossible to keep the sand out of everything! Early next morning, I headed straight to the women's shower stall when a woman jumped out of her toilet stall and asked me to hold her place in line because she was there first. There was no one else in line so I agreed. But then instead of her going to the sink area to maybe wash her hands or retrieve her shower bag, she had the gall to leave the building, run back to her camper, and grab her shower gear along with a clean change of clothing! The nerve of that woman while I waited and stewed in my own juices for several minutes! I knew full well that the shower stall was empty and I could have, should have, easily gone in to start my own shower. I felt that she had taken advantage of me. Had I been able to hear and understand what she was asking of me, I probably would have turned her down. Fortunately, when she came back, she took a quick shower, then I was able to get in and enjoy my nice warm shower. I thought about how people have a tendency to use other people, especially someone like me. Why couldn't I be more assertive? Without good hearing or vision, it is nearly impossible for me to judge accurately what another person's intentions toward me might be. So rather than offend someone undeservedly, I felt it was better for me to take a loss. Better for me to err on the side of goodness rather than to be a fool. But to be used by strangers? And to have people treat me in a condescending manner? That's the story of my life!
Chapter 2
It was Saturday, August 12. Harvey made a sudden decision to attend church up in Sault St. Marie, Ontario, Canada. There's also her twin city Sault St. Marie, the oldest city in Michigan, on the American side in northern Michigan. The Sault St. Marie International Bridge crosses the St. Marys River (French: riviere Sainte-Marie). The waters of Lake Superior drain into Lake Huron via St. Marys River. Dano and I weren't looking forward to going to church. It would mean a long drive involving a border crossing but Harvey was quite determined to go. So we all got dressed and tried our best to brush the sand off our bodies, clothes, and feet. We had no idea what time services would begin. And though we had once visited this church a year or so before, we would be flying in the blind without directions or a map. It seemed preposterous but once Harvey made up his mind, that was it! One thing we remembered to look for was the white water tower because that was near the meeting hall. We arrived at about 11:45 a.m., thinking we were late but others were also arriving at the same time. We asked them what time services started. The surprised looks and startled answers were "12:00 noon!" We were right on time! How lucky! But, of course, Harvey does not believe in luck. He believed that he was being blessed because he had the faith to go. God had paved the way for him to arrive on time. That's how Harvey views life. After Sabbath services had concluded, we were invited to join our brethren for a picnic at Kinsmen Park and a nice stroll along Hiawatha Beach. We met the Martins who had six children, the Dodds who also had six children, and Tuiti, an elderly lady who loved baking cookies and bringing them to services every Sabbath. Between the Martins and the Dodds, they comprised half the Sault St. Marie church, with a total membership of 16! Dano had a great time playing with the kids and said that he wouldn't mind moving to Canada. When we asked him where in Canada he'd like to move, he responded, "Sault St. Marie, of course!"
Chapter 3
Dano was sad to leave his new friends behind at the Kinsman Park in northern Ontario when it was time for us to head back home. "Home" was wherever our camper was! As we crossed back over the Sault St. Marie International Bridge to the American side, an interesting thought popped into my mind. I told Harvey, "Hey, the Soo Locks isn't too far from here! It's probably about a mile or two down St. Marys River. It'd be a shame not to take advantage of that. This would be a great opportunity for Dano! You know he'd love going through the Soo Locks because he's always curious about everything and wants to learn how everything works! Did you know that the Soo Locks is one of the great wonders of the modern world?" Dano jumped on the idea. Harvey mulled the idea over for a minute and agreed to accommodate our wishes. Dano was thrilled! We boarded a small cruise boat that took us into a small narrow lock. There were also huge locks for gigantic iron-ore-carrying freighters that needed to lock through St. Marys Rapids. These freighters are often referred to as "Lake Boats" because they sail the Great Lakes. These huge locks are still the largest waterway system in the world. Once the heavy metal gates closed behind us, we were walled in on both sides of the lock, much like a bull getting locked into a stall. To the front of us was another set of heavy metal gates. Since we started at the lower level of St. Marys River and Lake Huron, the high walls of the lock towered over our heads. Soon pumps began pumping water into the lock, causing our boat to rise higher. On both sides of these great white walls were large bold lines in black that marked off each foot like a ruler. As the water level rose, we could see how quickly our boat was rising, foot by foot, within minutes! It was amazing to see how much water could be pumped in so quickly without us ever feeling any turbulence. Our boat lift was as smooth as riding up in an elevator! Once the water level inside the lock matched the water level of upper St. Marys River and Lake Superior, the pumps shut off. We had risen 21 feet. Soon the heavy metal gates in front of us swung wide open and we took our exit from the lock. How nice we didn't have to make a mad dash through St. Marys Rapids and crash on the rocks! It was a pleasure cruising out onto St. Marys River. We saw various sights along the shores of St. Marys, including the Algoma Steel Plant's tall chimney which spewed bright orange fire high up into the darkening sky. What an impressive sight! There were thousands of tons of coal piled on several docks. We passed high rise apartments and office buildings and watched the city night lights flicker in the distance. As the sun set, the night air chilled quickly, causing us to feel cold. Dano and I were shivering and couldn't wait for our boat to dock. As soon as we disembarked, we rushed to our van and turned the heater on at full blast! Ahh, the warmth felt so wonderful! It was good to feel alive, happy, and content! TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK
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