I opened the door just as the fellow was knocking. Instantly, he put out his hand, and, with a big smile, said, "I'm Alan Haig-Brown, and I used to live here."Delightful from the first moment!
Alan smiled and laughed and thoroughly enjoyed himself and the conversations between me, him and his lovely wife, Anya. They told me of their beautiful marriage ceremony here years back, and all of the intimate, thoughtful and spiritual segments which made up the 2 hour, 3 location nuptials on the property.
This time, Alan and Anya were passing through town, on their way up island, and only had a short visit. Too bad. I was taken with them, their charm, wit, and grace.
As we chatted and reminisced around the yard, I asked Alan to relate the story of the cottage, which now stands dilapidated alongside the drive.
He explained the origins of each section. The larger, sturdier part was the garage and the added wing was a work shed.
When he was 18 with a new young wife, he asked the construction crew who had just finished the highway out front for the now empty work shack. Upon their consent, he hauled the shack from the new highway into the yard, alongside the old garage, and attached the two. He then shingled the new addition with hand-made cedar shakes.
On this day he pointed them out to me and exclaimed that he had made them all - himself - by his own hand. He's still proud of his work. And so he should be (the photo - above - was taken in front of the shingled cottage)
After many years of creating and editing a number of west coast trade magazines, Alan says, "Now I just write and make pictures." He's published several books. All of this, and more, can be found at a couple of his websites / blogs:
http://www.haig-brown.com
http://www.tideandcurrent.net
As for the beautiful and inscrutable Anya, she works with The Food School and the two of them split their time between New Westminster (just outside of Vancouver) and Thailand.
Sandra
No comments:
Post a Comment