Traditions
There are many definitions to describe the concept of traditions.
Often traditions are seen as something that we just do because they have always been done throughout the ages. Often I have found throughout my life that the common traditions lose their meaning as time passes. For Aaron and myself, we want traditions to mean something to us, to hold a very specific place in our hearts. I found that the greatest traditions that have been a part of my life have always been untraditional traditions. They're often small, simple and at the time never seemed like traditions, but for some reason always hold great importance. For example, when my sister and I were young, our father would make pancakes and always make them into the shape of something, like a cat, a house, fish and when he messed up the shape he was trying to make he would just turn them into a cloud. For Aaron, one tradition that has always stuck is leaving the Christmas tree up until the day after his birthday (Jan. 2). Recently Aaron and I have discovered we have started a tradition of our own.
Quadra Island is this wonderful escape, this wonderful piece of land that over the last year Aaron and I have grown to love. Each time we visit the island we get up one morning during our trip to watch the sunrise regardless if sunrise is at 5 A.M. or 8 A.M. and observantly walk the beach surrounding Drew Harbour.
This beach combing sunrise walk has quickly become our favourite thing to do while staying on Quadra. Each morning we get up and the experience is always different. Every sunrise will be unrepeatable, the beach is always shifting and changing with each tide. The morning is always fleeing, preparing to turn to day. What I love about this tradition is how it reminds me that time is always passing and waits for no one. It brings me to the present and the now. It truly forces me to focus on the moment that is happening right in front of my eyes and forget about everything that I have been distracted by. As I have grown older I have noticed that my mind is always focused on the past or the future (worrying about paying bills, work, what to make for dinner, etc.) but often I will forget about the present. Moments of the present seem rare, shrouded by the focus on the future. This tradition has become our way of forcing us out of our own minds.
August Summer of 2013
The first time we got up to watch the sunrise was in August of 2013. this was the first time Aaron had ever been to Quadra Island, along with my sister, my bother in law and my nephews.
We had woken up close to 5:00 A.M. in order to make it to Drew Harbour in time. The air was surprisingly cold for an August morning. We sat on a large rock that leads down the beach, here was the perfect vantage point to watch the sun rise from the horizon. Aaron and I sat in perfect silence, enjoying the warmth as it broke through the clouds. This was the most extraordinary sunrise we have ever seen. The light filled the sky with a vibrant and inconceivable pink, with glass-like calm water, which allowed for the ocean to reflect the sky.
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| The first Sunrise we ever saw in Drew Harbour |
After we watched the sunrise we walked down the beach towards Rebecca Spit. We combed the beach head to toe, checking all the nooks of the beach. We stumbled across a large crab that still had not been torn limb from limb by the seagulls.
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| Aaron Feeling extra Crabby this morning due to the 5 am wake up |
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| Mussels that have consumed the large rocks in the bay |
As we reached the middle of the bay I look down to find an old oyster shucking knife that someone must have lost into the ocean. It was a wood handled, rusted, Japanese and obviously sea water bleached knife. We collected all sort of different shells, rocks and sea glass along our walk. That morning was total bliss. As we reach the end the bay, we noticed it was filled with sand dollars of all sizes ranging from tiny to large all in different stages of life. Many were still a deep purple, but there was equally as many white dried sand dollars.
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| An Alive Sand Dollar |
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| Kait wading in to collect Sand Dollars |
After this we headed back along the road to home for some breakfast. From that morning on every time we have gone to Quadra we have gone to watch the sunrise and walk the beach in hope of seeing that unforgettable once in a life time pink sunrise and finding new treasures.
August Long 2014
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| Kait find some Sea Glass before Sunrise begins |
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| It's Starting |
We had headed over to Quadra Island to visit Kait's mother who had been living there most of the summer. The trip was relaxing and full of swimming and beach combing. We had gotten up early on the second morning on Quadra. Both Kait and I were so tired and barely managed to get our butts out of bed. We had gotten up around 5:30 A.M. It was incredibly cold once again for August. We walked down the road and quickly reached the rock. Aaron and I set up our cameras, preparing for the sunrise. Aaron and I counted down the minutes for the sun's light to show. The sky was very clear with few clouds, which allowed for us to watch the sun slowly peak our from behind the mountains. I have never really seen the sun fully rise before, but on this particular day and the way the land is laid out you can see it from start to finish. The Sunrise was a rich yellow with a deep blend of gold contrasting with a vibrant blue. Its beautiful warmth dissolved the cold temperature of the morning. The sun created the straight line of intense light down the centre of Drew Harbour causing intense silhouettes of the tree line across Rebecca Spit and the boats who had dropped anchor for the night.
Once the sun had began to peak we noticed a few otters playing and splashing around in the morning sun. It had taken us a few minutes to figure out exactly what they were. We had never seen sea otters in the bay before, only seals. As they disappeared back into the water. We headed down the beach and began searching the beach for treasure the tide had drug in. The tide was higher than it had been the previous summer.
The wonderful thing about beach combing is you never know what you'll find and the things you do you just never know how it got there, where it came from, and how long its been hidden in the movement of the tides. As we started coming closer to the end of our walk, satisfied with the finds of the morning, we spotted the largest moon snail shell we had ever seen and it was in perfect condition. Moon snails are the most disgusting looking creatures, but their shells are beautiful and always different. It was another great sunrise.
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| Live Moon Snail - Photo by Cathy Pengelly |
End of Summer 2014
In mid-August, Kait and I went back out to Quadra to visit with her family again. We spent the first couple days relaxing around the Quattage and helped Kait's dad build a deck around the outside of the new addition they had just finished building. Most of our Friday was taken up by the work, but it was nice to be able to help out and learn while we were at it. We spent the Saturday and Sunday hanging out around the Quattage, visiting the HBI, fishing, walking beaches, and heading over to Campbell River for some grocery shopping.
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| Waiting for a biter. |
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Kait and I originally intended to get up on the Sunday to go watch the sunrise, and what she didn't know was that I was planning on proposing to her when we got to the beach that morning, but we had to change our plans a little. I wanted to talk to Kait's parents about it before I asked Kait because at the very least, I wanted them to be aware that I was planning on proposing (not to mention that having their support meant a great deal too). I had been trying to find a time when Kait wasn't around to talk to her parents, but I didn't have any luck for most of the weekend.
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| Happy dogs. |
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| We took a walk along the beach at Cape Mudge and passed by its beautiful lighthouse. |
There was a brief period on the Saturday night where Kait went to have a shower and I had a chance to finally ask her parents, but needless to say, I was a little nervous and took too long trying to muster up the courage and Kait finished her shower just as I was starting to talk, so I aborted my first attempt. On the Sunday, around noon, I finally got a second opportunity, and this time I didn't waste it being a chicken. I finally managed to get the words out of my mouth, and my memory of the conversation isn't the greatest, but it went well. I even made Kait's mom Cathy laugh! It all worked out in the end, and the next morning, Kait and I got up for the sunrise.
I had her ring in my pocket, my camera in hand, and was trying not to be obvious or nervous looking. We got down to the beach just in time to see the sun begin poking over the mountains on the horizon. Kait saw a boat on the beach and wanted to take pictures of it but I had something else in mind. I was trying to set up a picture as an excuse to get her to stand where I wanted, plus I thought it would be cool to have a picture of the proposal, so I told her to sit still. I set the camera down on a nearby log, got the picture framed, and set the timer. I hit the button and made my way over to her, all the while counting down the time while the camera beeped away. Right about 5 seconds before the picture, I dropped to a knee and, well, you know the rest. She said yes (woohoo!) and we sat there together for a while, taking pictures and enjoying the sunrise together.
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| Our view when we got to the beach. Not too shabby! |
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| Sun is just poking out. |
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| Setting up the next picture. |
we slowly made our way along the beach, combing it for glass and other neat things before making our way back to the Quattage so we could break the news.
It was a great weekend.
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| The picture worked out well too! |
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-K & A
