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Nock everlasting

For many, many years now I have been trying to capture my feelings about my favorite space on earth in a photograph. I have thousands of photos to show, but none of which compare to this one.

Joey Jenkins is a photographer from St. Lewis, NL (my hometown), who resides in Lodge Bay. I follow Joey on Instagram and have collected a number of pieces of his work. He’s recently taken to drone photography and video, and his work perfectly portrays the life of Labradorians on the south coast.

I asked Joey if he could put his drone skills to use and make a photo of Shoal Point for me, giving the only instructions of ‘include the graveyard and the n-rock (nock)’ and I was not disappointed.

After previewing the photo I immediately chose to have Joey order in an acrylic print for me and it now rests on the wall in mine and Jeffrey’s bedroom. This feels whole. This feels like home.

Thank you so much, Joey, for bringing to light the vision that I had. Please keep doing your thing, and sharing your gift with the world. I’ll be watching.

M.

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Road Closed

I haven’t been down to this spot since last fall, it’s a spot that I’ve visited often since moving to Goose Bay many years ago. It’s known locally as ‘middle-dock,’ the dock between Otter Creek Sea Plane Base and Terrington Basin main dock.

Now, it appears, the area is no longer accessible. The sign to the right says that this area is now owned by a local hunting/fishing/boating club and is under renovation to add in a boat launch. Private. Members only.

I have a lot of history with this space, good and bad.

At the end of this road, which you can’t fully appreciate because of the gate, there’s a small wooden dock and there used to be lots of trees and shrubs. I have spent, most likely, hundreds of hours here over the years observing wildlife and taking the time to let my overthinking brain heal.

This spot held a first kiss. It has held buckets of tears. It has held nights of starry skies and northern lights observances. This spot has held unwanted advances, and thoughts of packing it in and moving away. Cup after cup of coffee. Silent moments observing wild ducks and geese, and seasonal photo taking of float planes and summer adventurers.

I’ve had more experiences at this dock than is kosher to share with you; some deep, buried experiences that are between me and the air that surrounds me. I always attached those hard experiences with the space, but now that I’m blocked from visiting the spot, I realize that it wasn’t the space that hurt or held me, it was me.

It’s time to forgive the spaces that are frozen in my memory, attached to negative thoughts. This is no longer useful to me. We leave our mark on every space we occupy, and we take photos so that we don’t forget that moment in time.

Letting my grievances float away with the wind..

M.

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knowledge keeper

I wish I could talk to my nan now, and ask her more focussed questions about life. I want 35 year old me to see life through her eyes. I did not have these questions in my early 20s. Did I learn everything I could learn with the time I had? I don’t think I came close.