1980 July 13,1980 Point Aux Pins Francolini's Cottage

July 13,1980 Point Aux Pins Francolini's Cottage

July 13, 1980 Point Aux Pins

    It is summertime and summertime means Point aux Pins. Mary Jane in a purple one piece terrycloth sun-whatever, is lying on her stomach on a Sun Cat sunning. Mary Anne in a black terrycloth one piece terrycloth sun-whatever, is lying on her back on the Sun Cat sunning. Suzanne, Mary and friend Bonny McLean are on the end of the dock prone and sunning.

   The children are on the sand, Joanna, Suzanne's three-year-old, Christina Suzanne's nine-year-old, Janet Bonny’s seven-year-old. John is foostering in the sailboat having graduated a year ago from the Sunflower 11. Michael Yorke, Mary Jane's four-year-old is playing with the girl next door. Steven, Suzanne’s seven-year-old has just come around the side of the cottage hopping, balancing, and talking to himself.

    I just had a refreshing swim in the cool cool waters of the St. Mary's River. A power boat comes out of the cove. There are jet trails in the blue cloud flexed summer sky. A tug goes by. The lighthouse is still there, red-capped against the pines. There is a new cedar solar house beside it. There are sailboats beached in the cove where the French built their sloops in the 1730s.The big difference is that the chicken tree is gone and the beaver that used to live in Teen Bay is gone. The bears have moved back into the thicker forests that are less humanly populated. The airport is where the blueberry marsh was, and the children on the beach are grandchildren.

    Paul is a doctor in Chester Nova Scotia, busily contemplating his navel in between patients and sailing. Jimmy a teacher father of three girls lives not too far away in Espanola, and shows the same noisy "joie de vivre" he did as a child, still volatile but controlled.

   Patrick is in town, the little boy off by himself not just sure of his life as it is lived, the insecure product of what negative impressions as he grew, who knows!

  Mary Jane still objecting to sand and bugs is married to John Yorke from Nova Scotia who is balanced, kind and humorous. The closest thing to "the prince" Suzanne jokes about, that this family knows.

   Suzanne the nurse separated since last year from Joel, divorce pending, nine years of stormy unhappy marriage behind her. Thank you God! Healing and then just knowing herself, gaining confidence in herself, a month return to work full time at the General Hospital. Mary Jane is caring for her three children, has them at camp, a joint project reminiscent of Mary and my combined summer efforts as well as her own two. She cares for them in town too.

   Catherine McIntyre has recently quit a remunerative secretarial job at Algoma Steel. She was engaged last year, broke it off for very valid reasons of incompatibility last Christmas and is being pressured by her ex-fiancé to try it again. She is in Toronto. Perhaps if she is wise she will make it her home and take a new approach to living. She is a beautiful, willful, and mixed up child. Her constant growing up threats of “when I am 18 no one will tell me what to do” was not an idle threat. Too beautiful and willful for her own good!

   Sheila is working at Algoma Steel, a tall slim lovely girl not spectacular or blatant like Catherine but lovely.

   Mary Anne is very pretty and intelligent, and like Mary Jane a constant suffering weight watcher. She is engaged to a handsome quiet moody Laurie Wilson. Wedding plans next May. She has passed her restless moodiness and has a positive approach to life. Europe on bread and cheese behind her, one year in Vancouver behind her, as ready as anyone is to take on life and marriage. Is anyone at any age ever really ready?

   Michael is married, a girl 10 months, a boy almost 2, and a wife who suits him perfectly and loves him devotedly. She also likes sailing which is his addiction. They are off on a three week holiday amongst the islands of Georgian Bay and the Manitoulin's, children and all. I don't know how much their new Tanzer cost and I don't want to. They enjoy life.

    Donna is a nurse part-time now, sister of Jimmy's wife Susan. Have I enumerated them all? I don't know!

    Wilf still a non-camper is in town this afternoon.

   Nora a pretty sixteen, a boyfriend right now, shorn of her thick lens glasses and into soft contacts. Her contacts treated to their utmost, suffering all of the Sixteen Syndrome. Very pretty too! All of Mary's girls are pretty.

   John and Jim McIntyre are now out in the sailboat the “Nordica”. The river this glittering Sunday afternoon is alive with water skiers and sailboats. The cottage is in Daly’s compound just down the beach three east of Attles (now the Psychney’s?). In the bay is Pozzebons a beautiful gray brick establishment. Disano’s is one away from here; Russell’s is down the beach as is the Delayers.  Kert’s and Richardson’s are no more. They were sold and torn down.  There are beautiful year-round homes on the property because Pointe aux Pins is now part of the city of Sault Ste. Marie.

    Where the bears walked one summer evening not so long ago now is Pine Shores Boulevard. The trail we dare not walk because it was the bear’s domain is now paved and prosaic Daligleish Drive. 

   The grand children still fish the Allagash – where Douglas and Suzanne used to fish, and they still walk the Indian trail to the store, and they still build castles in the sand. Plus everything changes and everything remains the same.