Before I was born my parents had a camp on Lake Superior which happens to be the largest fresh-water lake in the world. My mom Sis hated that camp for many reasons including:
- the railroad tracks between where she parked the car and the camp;
- the carrying of food and supplies across the railroad tracks;
- the eagle-eyes needed to watch two toddlers as they bobbed in the inland sea (that's what many people call Lake Superior);
- the patience to manage one of her children (not me!) who liked to set off on their own to explore, often dragging the younger sibling along ;
- the drop-in visits from friends from town who would arrive near supper time and stay;
- the weather;
- the bugs...
Anyway, you get the picture.
Sis loved her summers in town. She'd chat to folks walking by, help her husband with home renovations (now called house flipping), and making summer-friendly meals of potato and jellied salads.
She happily sold the camp but the only thing that they took to their house in town was the boat sign that my dad had made. The boat was called "Wee Four"but that sign had to be adjusted when I came on the scene nearly 14 years after my brother. The sign was an easy fix. Our boat became "Wee Four + 1". And that summer my mom sold the camp, the boat, brought a new baby (me!) home but proudly hung the Wee Four + 1 sign in our garage! She went on to relish her camp-free summers!