Help a bit in the garden, do a bit of yard work, help in the kitchen and the field...yeah, these kids had to help but there was plenty of time left over for fun. I didn't know anyone with the proverbial 'swimming hole' but one friend lived right beside the river and I swear I spent the best 4 hours of my life there. It was summer and we waded through the creek from their house down to the river with our rubber boots on. The river was only about 1' deep so we followed it for a few hours. Managed to get wet and cooled down along the way and dry off again before we were done (it was hot!). Eventually the river dried up completely which was surprising as it could often be a raging torrent but it was late summer in a hot, dry year and just perfect for us. We walked along the dry riverbed a while further then decided to head for home but we took a different route back. We headed through the bush (woods), through sunny field after stunningly-beautiful field, stopping to chat with the cows grazing and finally, up my friend's back 'amazing laneway' that wound its way through their fields and back to the old farmhouse. If there was a cloud in the sky that day, I didn't notice it as it certainly did not darken the beautiful, sunny day.
The laneway was amazing because it was such an easy place to walk, through the tractor ruts, as opposed to a field. It also held 'nature's treats' along its fences. The obvious would be raspberries, wild and normal grapes amongst other berries but this was also my introduction to gooseberries. Nowadays, I cannot imagine eating pie with 'green things' in it but my friends' mom made gooseberry pie and gooseberry jam (or was it jelly?), I ate both with great gusto, especially since I had helped her pick the gooseberries along the 'amazing laneway' and it was another of my best afternoons - ever!
The old farm laneways that have remained unmannicured are the best as their old berry bushes and vines remain intact and can continue to produce for decades.
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