“Perceptions,” by Gerry Warner

Op-Ed Commentary

If there’s one thing I immensely enjoy it’s the swoop and swish of multi-coloured leaves rustling around my feet as I walk down the street every Thanksgiving Day. It’s something I’m thankful for and there’s a few other things I’m thankful for too.

I’m thankful I live in Cranbrook in the Kootenays. Not much COVID here. Nor in Kimberley. All we have in this neck of the woods is an endless panorama of rugged peaks thrusting into the sky, now clear of smoke, and scenic views of the rugged Rocky and Purcell ranges which people from all over the world come to see.

On a more mundane yet important level, we’re blessed with a lifestyle in this region of the province that is the envy of others everywhere. The pace is slow. Rush “hour” is a matter of minutes. There’s lots of time to enjoy the finer things in life whether it’s an aromatic latte on the way to work, watching the sunrise over the Steeples or getting together with old friends in the Kimberley Platzl and watching the joy of tourists plunking loonies into the giant cuckoo clock.

And have you ever noticed the number of walkers in both of our towns? Individuals walking. Groups walking. Children walking or riding their skateboards and bicycles to school. Great exercise for young bodies and old bodies too. And if it gets them off their screens for a few relaxing minutes so much the better.

One of the things I look forward to the most this time of the year is the fall colours. The cottonwoods and aspen are the first to turn a bright yellow with flecks of brown and russet and even orange and red at times. But oh the tamaracks or Golden Western Larch as I prefer to call them. Take a hike into the Cranbrook Community Forest or Moe’s Canyon just off the Kimberley ski hill. If the tapestry of colour you see there doesn’t raise your spirits nothing will. It’s positively therapeutic. Try it and see.

And speaking of therapy, autumn is probably the best time to cycle or walk the Rails 2 Trails between Cranbrook and Kimberley or the Chief Isadore Trail between Cranbrook and Wardner and the many points along the way. These are only two of the dozens of bike trails in the region and they’re all at their colourful best at this time of the year. And if you want to venture a little further afield try cycling Picture Valley on the east side of the Kootenay River between Fort Steele and the Kootenay Fish Hatchery, one of the most scenic and bucolic locales you’ll find anywhere.

If I can be allowed to be a bit personal, I’d also like to express thanks for my two wonderful children largely raised in this area and products of the local school system. My daughter Stephanie is now completing a PhD in poetry online from the University of Manchester in England while living in Kimberley while my physician son Nathan is practising medicine in Australia and working towards being an emergency specialist, a degree that I dearly hope will bring him back to Canada some day.

What our children’s success shows is that all of us are blessed to live in an area like this where housing is affordable and the economy relatively strong considering the damage wreaked by COVID-19. Despite being rural, our area still provides enough resources for our children to succeed while their parents live the “good life” in small town B.C.

What more could anyone be thankful for?

Lead image: Fall colours at Lakit Lake. e-KNOW file photo

Gerry Warner is a retired journalist, looking forward to his share of turkey this weekend and not writing about politics for a change.

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