My parents arrived just after the rain stopped and we enjoyed the morning taking in the house and land while rainwater droplets sparkled in the trees. We planted the begonia we’d ordered with the gift certificate they gave Marsh last summer, and we gave it a solemn watering as befits the occasion in honor of those who served on both sides of our families.
We walked to the back and rediscovered together the back stream and pond; my mother’s surmise on the mystery hut there was a new one: a springhouse! And we think she’s exactly right! Very exciting to unravel another mystery… and to realize that there is indeed a spring in that spot. It’s a small one, and the water that issues immediately joins the slightly larger stream that issues from the south and flows out to the north and to Bog Brook (and eventually to Unity Pond).
That also means the structure is older than the previous residents.
We also tramped down to a point from which we could peer into the woods (not “our” woods, but the neighboring lot) where there’s a magical mossy haven similar to one we knew in Michigan called Copper Falls. I promised to explore it in person soon and provide pictures.
Speaking of Unity Pond, we then went and scrounged some food from the local mart to combine with the usual moveable feast that is my mother’s car trunk wherever she travels, and we picnicked on a bench facing the lake. Then made a great circle tour of Thorndike on the way home, seeing numerous farms and vistas that were new to all of us and appreciating the varied landscape and beauty of this area we’ve landed in.
As of this writing, on our way back down to Waterville for dinner again. The visit by my parents is special for perhaps obvious reasons; but any visitor at this stage brings riches just by the force of their observations. Their new eyes notice things we’ve missed, they put ideas together that we haven’t connected, they express delight or dismay in different degrees. It is a bit like adding facets to a gem.
At this point, a very rough-cut gem.