I had heard the rumors over the past year, but both my wife and I had hoped beyond measure that they weren't true. Unfortunately, the rumours were true. Jeff & Judi Burke, two of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet in a lifetime, and after only being with them four times in our life felt like they were already lifetime friends, were retiring. Now, you may ask, why is it such a sad thing for two people to be able to retire and settle down in their later years? There is a good reason. Not that I would ever begrudge them their long deserved reward, but it brings about the end of a certain era that means almost more to us than anything. It was a kind of starting point for us. As the door to our relationship was opening wider each day, the meeting of the Burke's and their place flung that very door wide open. And i couldn't say that any happier if I tried.
The Burke's own one of the best properties anyone could ever ask for. They own a Light House Inn.
On the Tip of Robinson Point, on Isle Au Haut, an island off the coast of Maine near Bar harbor, stands a 60ft tall lighthouse, with a ramp that extends all the way across tot he four room "Keeper's House". The original house that used to keep family after family safe and at work for about a hundred years as light keeps for the Coast Guard, had been bought in 1986 by the Burke's and converted to a small bed & breakfast.
I had first heard about the inn at least a couple of years before meeting my wife, and as I had always had an immense love of lighthouses, it was only natural that i share the information with her. At a time when new young love was taking hold and just about every place we went was an adventure, it was only a short time before we made pout way to the far reaches of the Maine coast of Stonnington, in Bull Hills, to take the small mail boat "Minke" out past the other islands dotting the bay to our next wave of excitement.
Upon docking at the old boat house and walking up a ramp that was slightly down reaching to us on the boat, we were greeted by our host, Jeff Burke. At once, I could see an incredible and uncanny resemblance to a favorite author, Stephen King. Jeff was a soft spoken man, probably one of the most soft spoken people I have ever met. I don't think he could have yelled at anyone if he had tried too. He led us up to the house with another couple that was also staying there. We were introduced to his wife, Judi, so did all the cooking on a huge wood stove. What made the Keepers house so unique was that It had no phones, or electricity. Jeff would at night go around and light kerosene lanterns thru out the house, which gave off a comforting orange/yellow glow. And each room had two candles to light for yourselves at night. The feeling that one gets from walking on the island and walking into the House was: "I'm Home.'
We spent two wonderful days, in the Keeper's room, which looked out onto the main tower in the front yard facing the ocean. It was designed so that the light keeper, while sleeping at night would be able to look out at a moments notice and see if the light was still lit. Both times that we visited the island we strayed in that room.
While the other couples that were staying in the inn, during the day, took their homemade lunch from Judi and went on their way hiking thru beautiful trails for the entire day, my wife and myself took advantage of the solitude and stayed relaxing in the Adirondack chairs on the lawn, reading and dozing, in the cool ocean breeze on a fine sunlit day. This was the way a vacation was supposed to be. At night, after an incredible gourmet supper prepared by Judi, we would watch the sun sink into the sea and then retire to the living room and listen to Jeff tell us stories about past inn stayers and other things that he knew about. It was all so perfect. In the end, when it was time to leave after the second day there, while our mailboat pulled away and we waved to Jeff one last time from the ever distancing boathouse, Liseanne cried. After two whole days, it was like leaving a home that you wished you never had to leave. even myself got teary eyed.
A year or two later we returned again, both Jeff and Judi, even after a certain amount of time and countless visiting tennents, they still remembered us. When we pulled into the pier and got off, it was such a familiar feeling. Those last two days, were some of the finest, because after spending an afternoon shooting the shit with Jeff and even helping him do some work on the boat house, I had told him of my plans that I was thinking of asking Liseanne to marry me. he looked at me and said, "what are you waiting for boy, get yourself out of here and go get her and ask her that." it was as is were knew each other so well that I wouldn't even question him. I smiled at him and waved and made my Way out of the boat house and into the afternoon rain. The rain had somewhat ruined the other visitors plans so everyone was in the living room talking. I went in and grabbed her and took her outside onto the ramp leading up tot he tower. I made small talk for about a min and then asked her to marry me. It was at that point that the rain stopped and the clouds broke and a stream of sunlight fell on us. She grabbed me hugged me and cried, out of joy of course. And once again, when it was time to leave, it was with great sorrow. We said we would be back again, and Jeff said he was looking forward to it. But as the tower vanished into the distance, I remembered something inside me saying that this might be the last time. It was.
We got married a year later and had a child right away, not planned but hey it was perfect anyways. But we never got back there. To our place where we knew we belonged.
Over the past three night, I have been reading Jeff's book called Island Lighthouse Inn, which we bought on our last stay. I read him chapter three tonight. I wanted our son, who's 8, to hear what it was like for us. He hasn't complained yet and he asked me questions after the readings. tonight I read about the chair. I had forgotten that. About how when Jeff was trying to get the Inn ready he had one piece of furniture that was so ugly it had no lace in the House. When he left it in the boathouse and finally say in it, and found how comfy it was, it stayed right there. I had fallen asleep in that very chair. I knew I had to look up the lighthouse again and see what was going on. It was for sale and they were retiring. We would never be going back there again. They were looking for buyers. and believe me, if I had the money, It would be mine right now. But alas its not to be. We will both have the fondest of memories of a place that has once been one of the most important places in our lives.
it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our old friend the Lighthouse and out old acquaintances, Jeff & Judi Burke. I hope they enjoy their retirement in the way that that deserve.
Fare Thee Well.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Maybe i have it figured out... or not
Well its been about two weeks since the last posting. Not a whole lot has changed. Except maybe realizing how much more in debt we really are. I was going to say poorer, but i didn't want to make us sound totally destitute, and yet, I think we might actually be approaching that particular landing pad.
Over the past two weeks, we have had to juggle a great deal of where our available money from our checks has been gong too. You know, such as, what bill gets paid and the sort, and also how much money is there gong to be left over for us to live on. Lets just say that my Mom, who is 89 and lives on whats considered poverty level, has been giving us money to help us get by on a week to week basis. Oh its not really alot, you know like just enough for us to both get as int he cars and stuff. Oh at first i really didn't want to, i mean I really didn't want to but embarrassing enough, it didn't take me long to cave in. But I make sure that's shes not restricting herself. I guess its that "mother's love" kind of thing. And she really does love my wife.
We've had to learn alot about getting along in a world without the instant gratification of living on credit cards. Our cards are maxxed out, so we cant use them. We have to try to make things stretch a little more than usual, and its not all that easy. There's one day a week where we have to babysit my sister - in-laws two young children, she has a sitter most of the time, but I think to help conserve money, we help out. My sister in law is quite nice and I do love her alot. But when the kids come over they do tend to eat and drink a whole lot. and right now its not a good time for that. I know that my sister in Law, Nicole< class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">alot of money woes also, but They don't realize how much more we're into it. You would think that they might bring a bit of their food over. My wife doesn't really like that I think that way. But hell, I have to think about us right now.
Anyways, living on the edge with not much money makes you feel a certain amount of humility. And that's the point that i want to make. Being brought down a whole lot of levels to feel the humility that we as both a couple and as individuals have either forgotten or never have gotten to a level like this to know what it is. And hence the title of this blog.
Not everybody may agree with me on this, but hear me out. The current economic downfall, is hitting everyone world wide. not just the Unites States, but everywhere. I have been watching recently on the history channel several specials dedicated to the upcoming event that is supposed to happen on December 21, 2012. So many ideas about what may be happening or what could or might happen. What kind of totally global event could possibly take place to reduce our population to a mere fraction of what it was. What could be so mind numbing that when we find out what happens that all we will want to do is sit on a hill and wait for it, or unless you have criminal tendencies, steal and rob and maim and all that good stuff. But maybe, just maybe it isn't something that's so tangible like that. What if its something that's happening now and we wont really see bottom until that date. What if, this is God's way of punishing us without destroying the world. What if its just and incredible amount of Humility that we all have to take every day, twice a day, making us frown at the thought of it like tasting the acidic mintiness of NyQuil. And what if its a humility so bad that we will not ever take anything for granted again. What if its just that. Humility.
I'm not Nostradamus, but the other night I was thinking and all of a sudden it came to me. Of course, it the humility of it all. Something that most if not all of us has totally forgotten. it's really to late now, to do anything about it and we have to ride it out, like a wild storm until it passes. Until its able to start getting better. Maybe its just so easy that our punishment is our own selves devaluing of life, that is going to teach us all a lesson. What it...?
Over the past two weeks, we have had to juggle a great deal of where our available money from our checks has been gong too. You know, such as, what bill gets paid and the sort, and also how much money is there gong to be left over for us to live on. Lets just say that my Mom, who is 89 and lives on whats considered poverty level, has been giving us money to help us get by on a week to week basis. Oh its not really alot, you know like just enough for us to both get as int he cars and stuff. Oh at first i really didn't want to, i mean I really didn't want to but embarrassing enough, it didn't take me long to cave in. But I make sure that's shes not restricting herself. I guess its that "mother's love" kind of thing. And she really does love my wife.
We've had to learn alot about getting along in a world without the instant gratification of living on credit cards. Our cards are maxxed out, so we cant use them. We have to try to make things stretch a little more than usual, and its not all that easy. There's one day a week where we have to babysit my sister - in-laws two young children, she has a sitter most of the time, but I think to help conserve money, we help out. My sister in law is quite nice and I do love her alot. But when the kids come over they do tend to eat and drink a whole lot. and right now its not a good time for that. I know that my sister in Law, Nicole< class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">alot of money woes also, but They don't realize how much more we're into it. You would think that they might bring a bit of their food over. My wife doesn't really like that I think that way. But hell, I have to think about us right now.
Anyways, living on the edge with not much money makes you feel a certain amount of humility. And that's the point that i want to make. Being brought down a whole lot of levels to feel the humility that we as both a couple and as individuals have either forgotten or never have gotten to a level like this to know what it is. And hence the title of this blog.
Not everybody may agree with me on this, but hear me out. The current economic downfall, is hitting everyone world wide. not just the Unites States, but everywhere. I have been watching recently on the history channel several specials dedicated to the upcoming event that is supposed to happen on December 21, 2012. So many ideas about what may be happening or what could or might happen. What kind of totally global event could possibly take place to reduce our population to a mere fraction of what it was. What could be so mind numbing that when we find out what happens that all we will want to do is sit on a hill and wait for it, or unless you have criminal tendencies, steal and rob and maim and all that good stuff. But maybe, just maybe it isn't something that's so tangible like that. What if its something that's happening now and we wont really see bottom until that date. What if, this is God's way of punishing us without destroying the world. What if its just and incredible amount of Humility that we all have to take every day, twice a day, making us frown at the thought of it like tasting the acidic mintiness of NyQuil. And what if its a humility so bad that we will not ever take anything for granted again. What if its just that. Humility.
I'm not Nostradamus, but the other night I was thinking and all of a sudden it came to me. Of course, it the humility of it all. Something that most if not all of us has totally forgotten. it's really to late now, to do anything about it and we have to ride it out, like a wild storm until it passes. Until its able to start getting better. Maybe its just so easy that our punishment is our own selves devaluing of life, that is going to teach us all a lesson. What it...?
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