Perspectives

Ruth's Story

It was spring. It had rained and cleared off again in a matter of minutes. I was outside one minute and the next, I was inside by the fire. The moisture dictated the clothing that I wore and puddles in the ruts reminded me of the need to have protective, waterproof footwear. But, far more than that, I felt strong and alive breathing moist, cool air, striding along the path, climbing over logs in my way, and feeling my skin soften and colour in the damp air. The alternating sunshine and cloud brought out the wonderful smells of the wood. I felt the vibrant spring greens just born, the dark, heavy evergreen boughs and the soaking grasses and mosses. I was alone, independent and powerful at exactly same moment that I felt the scene would engulf me and I would meld with it.

What characterizes Campbell River and its way of life? Well, we belong, no matter what our occupation or position on environmental use, to the magnificent nature around us. Nothing else can draw us and hold us in its grasp as it does. The picnic bench, however wet, speaks of the longing to be outdoors as much as possible, to feel that freedom and life.

When I first moved here twenty years ago, I was aghast at the messiness of everything, and the grid-less, helter-skelter development of the town. It seemed so uncivilized to have ferns, blackberry brambles, and a variety of weeds growing right in the town. The longer I live here, the more I understand the potent vitality and diversity of the wildness of our biome. No one has tamed this fertility into straight little rows of cultivated order like we had in our prairie towns. I now characterize our town pattern as organic and dictated by proximity to the ocean. Likewise, I no longer wonder why recently felled trees lie scattered and loosely piled. The imposition of order, no matter how necessary it seems, is deeply influenced by this unstructured wildness.

The tall, narrow trees point to the even greater heights of the slopes behind them. The vastness of the mountains and the height of the trees stress our littleness, our anxiety about the future of our community, our temporary nature.The greater life span and permanence in our natural world, however, reassures us that there will be a tomorrow of extravagant beauty for us to enjoy beyond the insecurity of the yo-yo effect of economic cycles dictated by world forces beyond our control. This is our home.

Submitted by Ruth McMonagle