I used to imagine what fun it would be to sit on the rail and sail down the staircase in one sweeping movement. It is a winding stairs and can be a little tricky if you are in a hurry. I had been in my office and was just a little distracted when I heard a knock on the door. I rushed down the steps thinking, once again, how great it would be to just take that slide. Who in the world could it be? It was early morning and I wasn’t expecting anyone.
All Done!
It took a week overall but the process of shocking the well is now complete. Our well is fed from an underground spring. The water level in the 30″ reservoir comes up to about an 8 foot level. For that volume of water, I use 3 gallons of javex which sits in the well for 24 hours before I start pumping it out and running it through the system. To get rid of all the javex and for the water to start running clear again, it takes four or five days. During that time and for drinking water and every day needs, I bring water from a nearby spring. That’s a LOT of water and it’s a LOT of work. It certainly makes one conscious about conservation. Ah but the muscles and strength I have built up in a once dilapidated old frame!
Many times throughout the week I thought of just how privileged I am to have access to a fresh, clean water supply – so many in this world don’t have that.
It also got me thinking about “the way it used to be”.
Years ago, my grandmother and mother would have had to lug water for all their needs – drinking, washing clothes, cleaning, bathing … and the list goes on. It would have been out of necessity as there was no running water. Men and women worked side-by-side to ensure daily needs were met. Most times the work load would be divided – hauling water, cutting and stock piling wood for heat and for cooking, and everything else that it took to run a household. But more often than not, the men were working away in the lumber woods. Quietly and with a trace of tears, I watched my Mom as she cranked the pump and filled the bucket with water and then my Nan turning the handle of the rollers to squeeze the clothes dry.
Before drifting off, I picked up the book. “Soon the light had nudged down deeper into shadow and it was like he existed in a dream world. … he thought he could see the ghostly shapes of people riding horses through the trees.” from Medicine Walk, by Richard Wagamese.
Have you ever experienced that eerie feeling that despite an empty room, you know you are not alone. The silence is real and yet it is deafening. What is it that Richard Wagamese said, “Spirits slumber and allow their stories to be told.” Which spirit was it that spoke so loudly in that silence I wonder? There was no slumber to it. The presence was vivid, almost electrifying.
It had been a restless sort of night so I got up early, all set to work. Just one more minute and the new website would be ready to go live. It was then that I heard the knock on the door.
Down the stairs I barrelled. I would have taken two steps at a time if it wasn’t for fear of breaking my fool neck. As I hit the bottom, I came to a grinding halt. I could see my Mom’s shadow in the doorway.
After the double take and no one there to know, all I could do was sit and laugh. And then, of course, I just wanted to tell you the story. Surely these things happen to everyone, every now and then. Surely!
That is remarkable. Did you open the door??? I am trying to imagine a reason for you hearing what sounded like “a knock”…
Remarkably I did not grow up in Newfoundland, but my hubby remembers not having an indoor bathroom but they did have a well with a hand pump at the kitchen sink.
Open the door! Not likely. I came to a screeching halt. It took several seconds for me to realize what I was actually seeing and I knew there was no one at the door. The poor old heart was racing for awhile. But throughout the day I wondered about the knock 🙂
Loved it beulah
Loved it
Isn’t it amazing how a shadow in the doorway can open up the imagination?
Another beautiful story Beulah ❤️
I’ve had a similar experience , throws you off your game for a bit for sure! I grew to 11 years in the environment of your mom and grandmother. However, being a child, I didn’t carry the workload, but observed it. We were all resettled from Millertown Juction in the 70’s. When we moved in to our house in Badger, we were like the Beverly Hillbillies, lol . switching on and off lights, flushing toilet, using the telephone !! Love your writings , wela’lin ♥️