Blog – Page 14 – The Cottage Wife

On a fine early-summer morning, just a few years into cottage ownership, Brian was wandering aimlessly around the edge of our well-treed front yard. The ground was fairly dry and solid after the spring melt by then so he was surprised to have a step go squish. He stepped back, then forward and squish again. He tapped a flip-flop to the left squish, and to the right squish. He looked around and found only a small circle of squishy grass. “hmmmm.” He squatted to examine the scene closer. A vision of The Beverley Hillbillies’ stumbling across “black gold” (oil) on their humble plot of land and becoming millionaires overnight pops into his mind. You KNOW what he did next! Of course he poked his finger into the grass! Well, sadly it wasn’t black gold that he found. Our Septic Tilebed Failed! A couple phone calls later and we were slated to have our septic bed replaced. Much to our dismay, this meant the removal of several of our beloved trees. We had to make space and ensure roots don’t encroach on the new bed anytime soon. On the morning of the clearing I went to town to write, so I didn’t have to witness the massacre. The contractors made short work of the entire process. Within a day or so our new septic bed was in, the lot levelled and the lawn was reseeded. They even dropped enough gravel in one corner for us to build a shed upon. There were just enough trees left at the front to shield us from the noise and view of the road! Suddenly we had light and space! My mind went straight to the garden centre. By the end of the summer we had a good start on a lovely expanded garden, a new and safer fire pit, space to play bocce or have our friends dog run a bit, space for a shed - or boat parking – or guest parking in a pinch – or something … later, and we had light! Glorious sunlight for more of the day than we knew we were missing! So, even though we never would have chosen to take out those trees, and certainly never wished for septic trouble, it turned out to be a real gift. We’re enjoying our open yard, a garden that can be home to flowers that need more sunshine, and we have more room to play.