201009 Goodbye to Quebec Safe at Home

 Oct. 09

Mumma Yaga is safe at home in Toronto. K and I had an unremarkable drive home, an 8 hour drive, with stops. We left the unpacking until later and out came Robin and Indre for hugs. Fig took off on a brief tour of the neighbourhood, just to see if everything was the same. A kind young woman befriended him and grabbed his collar for me.

Tamar had a lovely dinner ready for us and the table all laid, so we declared it our Thanksgiving dinner! No one feels like cooking a turkey. I have always done one for Thanksgiving with all the accompaniments, kind of a practice run for Christmas, but this year I will pass. K and I have been enjoying a diet of more vegetables less white breads and rice, lots of vegetable proteins and fish instead of meat, so the nine yards of Thanksgiving is more than we could enjoy. We might have brussels sprouts, beans and sweet potato, maybe some precooked turkey or chicken. Pumpkin soup instead of pie. Some fall fruit: grapes and apples. Mmm. Now I am getting excited! 

But stuffing! my favorite part of a turkey dinner, and also Nick's. I didn't have to share leftover stuffing with anyone until he came along! Alas, I will do without (and Nick too, poor thing). I cannot enjoy unnecessary foods anymore: they seem, well, unnecessary. Stuffing and gravy, ice cream, cakes, pastries and pies all seem like extras we don't need. This is where one might say that getting old stinks, but it is funny what we sometimes leave behind happily as we get older. If we were still 19 and burning the candle at both ends, running and playing sports, then those treats would be part of a (somewhat) healthy diet! At Christmas I usually make a chocolate cheesecake that is to die for, but last year date squares were the treat of the holiday. Perhaps on Monday Indre and I will make an apple crisp. It doesn't seem so unnecessary, since it is apple season and the weather is turning chilly. Indre is our expert apple crisp maker nowadays!

I am sad for all the single people who would normally be dining with friends or relatives for Thanksgiving. We who have family around us at home cannot imagine the isolation that single people face in this pandemic world. For students away from home, perhaps for the first time, this weekend would have been a welcome visit home to eat real meals and get their laundry done, but Covid-19 has kept many on campus for the weekend. Many more never got to the campus: they are studying from home. They will miss the social life they should be enjoying; the independence and extracurricular events that are an integral part of the university experience.

Indre and Robin seem to be doing well with their virtual learning. Indre is actually better at getting her work done because she is not distracted by classmates around her. She has her own desk and supplies and Robin is across the room at his own desk, facing the other way. With their headphones on they are quite able to focus on their own classes. Nick listens in with Robin during teacher time and sits with him during independent work. The one-on-one is excellent for immediate feedback and assistance. Indre showed her class Fig for show-and-tell today! He sat on the couch and behaved very well. Today the weather was lovely and Robin and Indre were outside playing whenever they had a break. They play a little (mostly social-distancing!) with the neighbour children after school so perhaps they are luckier than some.

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On our last day in Quebec, K and I went up to our favorite lookout and said goodbye to Lac Memphremagog. And goodbye to Chemin du Lac. It wasn't sad. We had a lovely long holiday, and and our memories are full of the peace and beauty we found there and we feel rested and renewed. 

    

On our last day it rained 35 millimetres and a leaf. I remembered to bring home my rain gauge! 

Keep safe. Thanks for visiting,

Mumma Yaga