I had a couple of mishaps on the way,namely not paying attention while pumping gas and in turn, pouring it all over my leg. I changed in the rest room. Pew..what a smell. I tied the "gas pants" into a plastic bag;Yikes. I had a fleeting thought about how lucky I'd been and what if everything falls apart so close to home? What I realized? My attitude determines my perspective and none of my journey has been about luck! I continued to drive and aaahaa, I saw a beautiful moose. About 20 minutes later another moose ran right into the road;Gorgeous. Another reminder that this is not the the end of my journey. It's another stop on a road that has been filled with divine guidance.
I went to Maine because, for many years, I had wanted to find a lake where our family stayed over 40 years ago. I was barely able to remember the visit. I do remember three things: 1. going up to the main cabin for meals (of course I remember that). 2. our family had very fond memories of that vacation and 3. one of the families staying there had a dog named "Gussy".We loved her. In fact, when we got a dog we named her Gussy after this dog. (Her real name was Augustine which I still think is amazing considering how much I love St. Augustine. There are no coincidences).
I planned to stay in Maine for a few days. I hoped to spend time at the lake and also wanted to use this time as a way to get used to being back in New England. I've always found Maine very peaceful and thought it would be a good place for reflection as I get ready to come home.
I got to the Wilson Lake Inn late. It was beautiful and so were the owners... Susan and Tom. Here's an example of how wonderful they were; the morning after I got there I was doing laundry and told Susan about my gas laden pants. She took them from me, soaked them in Oxyclean and hung them on her private residence clothes line for the afternoon...She had also looked on line to find out the best way to wash clothes stained by gas. Who would do that? They were genuinely kind people.
My first full day there, I decided to go Apple picking... Yahoo... I love apples and it was a gorgeous day. I drove out to one of the many orchards. There were lots of families with kids and we hopped on the wagon for the tractor ride out to the orchard. The guide told us where to find our favorite kinds of apples and where he'd pick us up later. Off we went. My gosh... What a day! I loved it.
I went to the back rows (because I asked where the big apples were) and leisurely picked my favorites. It was so quiet and beautiful that day. The orchard was right on a pond and there was a little wooden cabin with a fire going where you could listen to storytelling once you finished picking the apples. Instead of doing that, I laid under a tree and soaked up the sun and the pure joy I felt from laying in the grass.
The next day was my adventure to Lake Anusagunticook. I hoped I'd find it. I was so excited and a little apprehensive since it was so hard to find on a map.Over the years if I met someone from Maine I'd ask if they had ever heard of the lake where we stayed. No one I met had ever heard of it.I was so happy when my angel Kellyn, from AAA, had seen it on a map. I knew what town to go to but I still didn't have directions.
The Innkeepers were so helpful. They found the lake on line, walked me through the directions and wished me luck. I left pretty early because 10 miles is not 10 minutes driving on the back roads and I wanted to spend alot of time there.
About an hour into the drive, I started thinking it wouldn't happen. I stopped at a store and asked and no one in the area had heard of the lake. They said"Canton Lake" is right around the corner and I said, "No, this other lake is supposed to be around here,too". They didn't know of any other lake and then a woman came in and gave me directions to what sounded like Canton Lake but when I asked she said it was Lake Anusagunticook. Okay, then, I just decided to take a chance and if it wasn't the lake I wanted, I'd sit there and enjoy the lake that was there. I drove about another 2 miles and the first thing I saw was a street sign that said "Pinewood Drive".
Hmm, this is the same name as the Inn from many years before.I looked to my left and saw a lake with a little opening so I pulled over. What was right in front of me? That's right, this sign. I was so excited I felt like I found gold. 
Right then, two men were walking toward me so to be sure, I approached them and said, "I want to confirm that this is Lake Anusagunticook because someone told me it's called Canton Lake". That moment proved to be the beginning of a new friendship because that is where I met Jim Lavoie and his partner Barry. Jim said, "Yes, they call it Canton Lake now, but it is Lake Anusagunitcook". We got to talking and Jim told me he now lives in Florida but still has a camp, here, on the lake. I asked him about the Pinewood Inn and he showed me the now empty lot at the top of a hill. I remembered that as little kids we had to go uphill to get to the main lodge and there were little cabins surrounding.I could picture it. Get this, Jim was a cabin boy at the Inn around the time I was there! He was about 16 at the time. So, I asked him, since the people we went there with that one year went alot, if he remembered any family names and he said, "Hmmm",he thought about it and then came up with one name and guess what it was? Yup, Howes!! Are you kidding me?
As we talked a little more he asked me if I had a brother, what? Holy cow, could there be a more serendipitous encounter? I don't think so... I told them I was going to visit the lot where the Inn used to be and they invited me back to their camp to chat later.
I asked if I could take his picture and we exchanged information just in case I didn't go back to their camp.
I walked to the top of the hill (where the Pinewood Inn had been). This is a picture from the Main Lodge,lot. It felt familiar.
I met Sarah, there. She was napping at the top of the hill. We talked for a long time, longer than I had wanted to be up there. I really wanted to check out some more stuff. I stayed with the conversation because something inside me said, wait. I never question the length of time I spend with someone because I’ve learned that timing isn't mine;just keep trusting.
Once Sarah and I finished our conversation, I went further into the woods looking for remnants of the Inn. As I started down the hill I ran into a woman walking her dog; Jane and Cookie. As it turns out Jane owns the property. She and her husband bought it and tore down the Inn. (it was falling apart). They split it into subdivisions and are selling it. Jane gave me all her information. Now, had I not spent extra time talking to Sarah, I’d never have met Jane,hmm.I drove around the lake spinning over my afternoon's events and decided to take Jim up on his offer to visit his camp on the lake. I have learned a very important lesson on this trip. If I think I have more important things to do than spend time getting to know someone new, I'm wrong! I went to the door and they welcomed me in right away. We talked more about the history of the lake and he told me about the memories that came flooding back to him after our meeting. Jim and Barry told me they usually take their walk in another direction. For some unknown reason they had decided to walk in the opposite direction.Had they not made that decision we never would have met!
That evening I went to the Farmington Fair. A down home country fair. For the first time ever, I watched the tractor pull event. It was actually really fun!
The next day was a day of preparation. Time to get ready for the ride home. I had made an appointment to get a pedicure later in the day but decided to take a hike at a park nearby. I took a little scenic hike that ended on a stone overlook with flat rock ledges. It was another gorgeous day so I laid down and just felt peace surround me like a warm blanket.
Later in the day, I took the 1.5 mile drive to the nail spa and got lost. AMOS had some trouble in Maine. When I got there and we talked about my trip we all thought it was hilarious that I got lost going a mile down the road.
Maine? An embarrassment of riches ;one of many along the way!
So here it is, the beginning of Fall and the end of this part of an amazing journey. I am on my way home and I feel very peaceful about it. I'm ready.
See you there!!!
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