Canada is an enormous country extending over six time zones and framed by three oceans. Much of the land is uninhabited and covered by forests filled with wildlife and beautiful lakes. In the west, where I live, the Rocky Mountains stand guard over the prairies to the east and the coastal mountains to the Pacific West. Although European countries plundered nations to the south for gold, the French and English had visited the eastern coastline of Canada for centuries fishing and travelling inland through the waterways seeking fur - especially beaver.
A very peaceful land, its western settlement was directed by the railroad companies and the establishment of the Mounted Police. On my maternal pedigree, I am descended from the earliest French Candian settlers who arrived in the 1600's. Another part of my family helped homestead the west, building sod huts and eating gophers to survive through our harsh winters. All of my ancestors endured many hardships to help found this magnificent country of Canada.
Time seems endless here as I gaze upon the mountains to the west or the Porcupine Hills southward across the Sheep River. I now know why I have always sought a house with such a view and this quest has brought me closer to other hills, thousands of miles away, in Wales.Welsh hills, with wondrous names such as, Garregydwfan and Craig Arw. Far older than the Rockies, these hillsides lured me to their legends and I unearthed lost lives and loves, lonely deaths, terrible disasters and triumphs over such heartaches I could never fathom.
For my ancestors moved their mountains with an eternal endurance with just their hearts, hands and voices. I am proud to be from their valleys which were once so far away, but as I searched for them, they were brought closer to me.
Mountains and large rocks can make a journey and we can find our home again.
Let me bring your hillside home to you - for they always keep a welcome in the valleys, and memories can return once you know where to search.
Links of Canada and Canadian interest
Ellyn's Canada page