Dear Downhome,

Your extraordinary magazine is a joy to receive at our house every month and has been for many, many years. Thank you for all the amazing stories, recipes, jokes, etc. and basically making Newfoundland come alive in our house.

My partner Bill and I visited your province for three weeks in September and October of this year. Our drive took us to so many beautiful communities such as Fleur de Lys, Cape St. George, Gambo, Trepassey, Bonavista and New-Wes-Valley where we heard first-hand of the blessed fortune for seven fishermen who were rescued and safely taken home following a fire and abandonment of their vessel. Along our travels we met the most handsome Australian Shepherd dog I ever saw and two sophisticated felines. To my heart’s delight we also met a lovely lady who was a Buchta dancer on Don Messer’s Jubilee (I always wanted to be a Buchta dancer). Gorgeous scenery embraced us like a big hug everywhere we ventured and that includes all the places we visited and not just those mentioned above.

Our last two days we rented a cottage in Newfoundland’s most westerly point, Cape Anguille, where the waves splashing on the shore lulled us like a baby being rocked to sleep. Here we roamed the shore for many hours where the salt air filled our nostrils and the crystal clear water brought such peacefulness.

On our last afternoon, upon spending several hours walking along the rocks with the waves splashing at our feet, I said a few prayers of thankfulness for the opportunity and health to have travelled safely on this fantastic vacation.

My mother, who passed in 2022 at age ninety-four, walks beside me every day, but today her presence was more pronounced. Perhaps it was the connection to the saltwater and the rocky shoreline, as my parents were born and raised on Big Tancook Island, which is located off the southern coast of Nova Scotia. Mom spent countless hours exploring the shore all around the island but more so below our house basking in the tranquility, waiting for her fisherman husband or looking for the unique shaped rock which she wrapped up in a Christmas present so we would be fooled by the weight of the package.

I silently asked Mom to send me a sign and as Bill come up behind me saying, ‘it’s time to go,’ I looked down at my feet and enclosed in a photo of the rock I found. To say the least, I was overwhelmed, but I knew my mother was walking with me on that day, as she does every day, and I will treasure this stone as I have treasured being part of her forever.

Yours truly,

Donna Langille

Amherst, Nova Scotia