Our Foliage Drive, by listener

Hubby and I are freshly home from our day's foliage drive into Canada. It was a very pleasant day most of the way: blue sky, mid-60's, and spectacular views. We stopped for awhile in Newport, Vermont and thought what a nice town it is, with a very well thought out waterfront, at the bottom of Lake Memphramagog (known in our home ed days as "Lake Meantforafrog"). We crossed into Canada at a town so small that the Customs office was housed in what appeared to be an old filling station. The way into Canada was not blocked off; another car from town just drove on by Customs as we came up to it. We stopped outside the office and waited until an agent came out to greet us. We handed over our passports and answered the three simple questions he asked. Then he wished us a nice time and we wished him a wonderful Thanksgiving ~ at which he beamed a smile. All very pleasant. Canada is so nice.

The views along the east side of the 32 mile Lake were panoramic revealing rounded hills and mounts and glimpses of the steeple and turrets of the Abbey of St. Benoit du Lac, nestled as it is in the Y at the top of the Lake. The lay of the land reminded me of the Scottish Highlands. We laughed over happy memories and future hopes as much as we marveled over what was right here before our eyes. We stopped occasionally to get a closer look at some sites, such as a unique boathouse with stained glass windows and a covered bridge. The city of Magog, at the top of the Lake, had the only heavy traffic we saw on the whole trip, despite this being Canada's Thanksgiving weekend. There is a wonderful park at the top of the Lake, with long views down the Lake and mountains all around from Jay Peak to Haystack to the Pinnacle. We stood there long, watching the sailboats tacking, wishing we had taken our children around this Lake in their younger days. We're ready to take any of them and all grandchildren on the trip any time. We got lots of good photos.

We hoped we could get close enough to the Abbey to get a good photo, and chanced taking a drive down the Abbey's road, yet not wanting to disturb their Sabbath. Suddenly, we were there, and there were cars everywhere and people everywhere, as if a festival were underway! Thus we got to park and walk all around, go inside the nave of the Abbey and sit in silence there for a time before Vespers was to begin, hearing the organ offer the prelude. We didn't stay at that point as it was to be all in French and we were concerned about how much daylight we would have left for the trip home. However, we are interested in returning for retreat. Outside we visited the tiny stone chapel on the property and purchased some Abbey applesauce, made from the orchard on the grounds, tended by the monks.

Back on the road again, we drove west to Cowansville, then south through Dunham and Frelighsburg (where we used to visit Susan and Mike Beam and family) as the sun set quickly. It was actually a little easier driving in the dark than with the bright setting sun in our eyes. At last we came to the USA border just north of Enosburg Falls. We imagined we'd have a little stiffer time coming back into the States than we'd had going out, and it appears we were correct. The agent looked at our passports, asked us a number of questions, sometimes twice, including asking what our jobs are, and had us pop the trunk and searched it. He even wanted to look at the applesauce we bought and wanted to know the meaning of our license plate ABIDE. It seemed a bit excessive, but that's the USA. He also noticed one of our tires looked low. Ha! It was a little annoying, but not horrible. We did reflect as we drove off that we don't like not feeling welcomed home to our own state and country; that we had felt more welcomed to Canada.

But that is not all; oh no, that is not all. A few miles into Vermont we noticed the mostly full Harvest Moon just beginning to rise. We had been out walking recently, striving to get a good Harvest Moon photo and here was another chance. So we stopped at the crest of a hill, where fields lay to the east and the view was open, to get a few good photos of the pumpkin-coloured moon rising over the mountains. After two or three photos, a large ATV pulled up beside us, blocking the view. For half a moment we thought it must be a Good Samaritan making sure we weren't stranded. But no. Imagine our surprise when our eyes focused more surely and saw that this person was in fatigues, wearing 'black face,' and carrying both a walkie talkie and a large gun...!! We were asked what we were doing and replied that we were taking photos of the moon. The person spoke into the walkie talkie saying, "It's okay" and drove off. Only afterwards as we recovered ourselves and our wits did we realise that he had never identified himself to us. I wondered if he was one of those "Minute Men" but Hubby thought he was a member of the National Guard. But we were not given the courtesy of being told this information definitely. It kind of freaked us out, and as we considered it, it freaked us all the more. What is going on in this country?! A few more miles along the road we encountered a second military ATV. It felt like we had entered a police state instead of dear old Vermont. We felt like we should have stayed in Canada.

I am ready to redouble my efforts to make change happen one month from now. I want my country back.

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