Even In 1820 It Was Worried Christmas Traditions Were Disappearing

Blue Jays Enjoy a Special Christmas Treat – These Blue Jays along with several other of their family friends didn’t take long to find a special gourmet mixture of sunflower seeds and peanuts to enjoy on a sunny December 23rd afternoon.    The abundance of snow on the trees throughout Muskoka is providing for a perfect winter wonderland setting for Christmas.
Fred Schulz Photos

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BACK IN THE 1820'S WASHINGTON IRVING BELIEVED THE CULTURAL TRADITIONS OF CHRISTMAS WERE DISAPPEARING

SO WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL WITH TRADITION ANYWAY?

      THERE'S MUCH MORE TO THE CHRISTMAS SEASON THAN GIFT BUYING. RIGHT? MY MOTHER USED TO SAY THIS, USUALLY WHEN SHE FOUND OUT OUR TINY CHRISTMAS BUDGET WAS GOING TO BE SERIOUSLY ENCROACHED UPON, BY THE URGENT NEED FOR FOOD AND HOUSEHOLD PROVISIONS INSTEAD. MERLE LOVED BUYING PRESENTS. RIGHT UP TO THE OCCASION OF THE LAST CHRISTMAS, SHE PUSHED ED TO CARRY OUT THE MISSION, WITH HER LIST IN TOW, WITHOUT COMPROMISE. AT THIS POINT, SHE WAS CONFINED TO A WHEELCHAIR, BUT THAT DIDN'T CURB HER PASSION FOR SPENDING MONEY ON GIFTS SHE BELIEVED WE NEEDED. ED USED TO TEMPER IT ALL IN THOSE YEARS, BECAUSE MERLE WAS ALSO LOSING HER RECENT MEMORY, ALMOST AS QUICKLY AS SHE MADE ANNOUNCEMENTS. SHE COULD REMEMBER FIFTY YEARS AGO, BUT NOT WHAT SHE SAID FIVE MINUTES EARLIER. SHE LIKED TO SEE THE SMILE ON YOUR FACE WHEN YOU OPENED THE GIFT SHE HAD MADE ED BUY, AND THEN ASK US, A MINUTE LATER, WHAT WE WERE SMILING ABOUT. THIS HAS KIND OF STUCK WITH ME, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE MOST OF THE TIME, IT WAS ONLY THE MOMENTARY IMPULSE TO SMILE, AND THEN, IN RETROSPECT, PONDER WHY ANYONE WOULD HAVE GIVEN ME A CD ENTITLED "SOUNDS OF THE CITY HARBOR." HONESTLY, I COULD HEAR THE BODIES THAT THE MAFIA WAS GETTING RID OF, BEING DUMPED IN THE WATER. NOT TO MENTION THE SOUND OF CLINKING WHISKEY BOTTLES AND BEER CANS. TALK ABOUT FESTIVE ENTERTAINMENT. I WOULD REALLY HAVE LIKED A JAR OF OLIVES OR PICKLES, MORE SO, THAN A CD THAT REMINDS ME WHY I LIVE IN THE COUNTRY. 

      I LIKED TO RECEIVE CHRISTMAS PRESENTS AS A KID, WHICH FOR THOSE YEARS, MADE ME SEEM QUITE NORMAL TO MY FAMILY. THE ABNORMAL STUFF CAME LATER IN LIFE. YET I ALWAYS ENJOYED THE FOOD GIFTS MORE THAN TOYS. I'D GET MOST USE OUT OF SKATES AND A HOCKEY STICK. MERLE INSISTED ON BUYING ME SWEATERS THAT DIDN'T FIT, OR THAT I WOULDN'T WEAR BECAUSE THEY WERE WOOLEN, (I HATE THE PICKY FEELING OF WOOL ON MY SKIN), SOCKS THAT WERE TOO BIG, AND UNDERSHIRTS WITH A CHEST REGION BEST SUITED TO A BODY-BUILDER. HER HEART WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE, BUT SHE KNEW MY FAVORITE GIFT, THAT WOULD PLEASE ME TO THE LAST MORSEL, WAS A THICK WEDGE OF OLD CHEDDAR FROM THE MUSKOKA TRADING COMPANY IN BRACEBRIDGE.

     AS FOR GIFTS ONLY BEING "THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS," YOU'D NEVER KNOW IT BY WHAT THE MEDIA THRUSTS AT US. THEIR "THOUGHT" IS, YOU WILL WANT TO SPEND OODLES OF MONEY GETTING THE "BEST" NOT JUST AN "ORDINARY" GIFT.....BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT REALLY COUNTS. IT SEEMS, AT TIMES, THAT THE GREATEST SIN YOU CAN COMMIT, UPON ANOTHER, IS TO GIVE A LESSER GIFT THAN IS EXPECTED. AS FAR AS THE "THOUGHT" THAT COUNTS, IT DOESN'T REALLY WORK OUT THIS WAY.....AS WITNESSED BY THE FROWNS ON CHRISTMAS MORNING, WHEN ANTICIPATION LEADS TO DISAPPOINTMENT. I THINK THE ONLY WAY I COULD BE DISAPPOINTED, IS TO FIND OUT THE TURKEY WAS STOLEN WHILE WE SLEPT. I'M SO BEHIND MY TIMES, AND STALWARTLY TRADITIONAL, THAT FOOD WEIGHS WELL ABOVE, WHAT SOMEONE MIGHT GIVE ME AS A MATERIAL GIFT. IF THE GIFT HAPPENS TO BE FRESHLY MADE BREAD, OR TARTS....PRESERVES, OR BANANA BREAD, THEN I WILL CELEBRATE THIS AS THE FINEST "MATERIAL" OFFERING OF THE SEASON.

      I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN KEENLY OBSERVANT OF CHRISTMAS SEASON TRADITIONS. EVEN AS A CHILD, LIVING IN THE NAGY APARTMENTS, UP ON THE CHESTNUT LINED, HARRIS CRESCENT, IN BURLINGTON, IT WAS MY FAVORITE TIME OF THE YEAR. IT MIGHT SURPRISE YOU TO KNOW, FOR A FUTURE ANTIQUE SPECULATOR, THAT PRESENTS WERE ALWAYS THE MINOR ASPECT OF THE HOLIDAY. A SEEMINGLY HUGE CONTRADICTION FOR A GUY WHO PROSPERS TODAY BASED ON COLLECTABLE MATERIALS, AND THEIR ANTIQUATED VALUES. THUS, I'M A MATERIAL GUY. SO IT'S A LITTLE BLASPHEMOUS, TO DECLARE THAT I'M NOT INTERESTED IN GETTING STUFF FOR CHRISTMAS. I DO MEASURE ACQUISITIONS IN THIS FASHION. JUST NOT SO MUCH AT CHRISTMAS. I HAVE ALWAYS FELT, EVEN AS A WEE LAD, THAT CHRISTMAS WAS MYSTERIOUS; BOTH SPIRITUAL AND ENCHANTING. EVEN BEFORE I KNEW WHAT EITHER WORD MEANT, I WAS ABSORBING THE SEASON LIKE A SPONGE, FEELING THAT IT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT PERCEPTION OF ALL; TO APPRECIATE THIS COMING-TOGETHER TIME OF THE YEAR, AROUND A TWINKLING EVERGREEN; AND A "GROANING BOARD," LADEN WITH WONDERFUL FOOD. I HAVE TO FOOTNOTE HERE, THAT HAVING HAD AN "ANGEL" DREAM, EARLY IN MY LIFE, DURING A SERIOUS ILLNESS, DID MAKE ME VERY AWARE OF WHAT ANGELS MEAN IN THAT SPIRITUAL SENSE OF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON. MY MOTHER ALWAYS HAD LOTS OF ANGEL-THEMED GLASS ORNAMENTS HANGING ON THE BOUGHS, AND ONE THAT TOPPED THE TREE. I NEVER, AT ANY TIME, TOLD EITHER OF MY PARENTS, ABOUT MY DREAM, OR EVER MADE ANY SUGGESTION, ANGELS WERE MY CHOICE FOR DECORATIONS. SHE SEEMED TO KNOW MY PREFERENCE ANY WAY, BUT THEN ALL MOTHERS, JUST SEEM TO KNOW THESE THINGS WITHOUT HAVING TO HEAR A FORMAL DECLARATION.

     SO I EXPECT, THAT MY ANGEL-MEETING, (YOU CAN ARCHIVE BACK TO BLOGS DEALING WITH MY GUARDIAN ANGEL), VERY EARLY IN LIFE, HELPED ENHANCE MY PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON. SUZANNE CAN VOUCH FOR ALL MY SEASONAL CHANGES OF ATTITUDE, A LITTLE LIKE THE RECLAIMED SCROOGE, BRINGING ME BACK TO A MORE SPIRITUAL RECKONING WITH MY PURPOSE IN LIFE, OUR FAMILY TIMES, THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN WHICH WE LIVE, AND OUR HOME TOWN GENERALLY. SUZANNE CLAIMS THAT I BECOME VERY PHILOSOPHICAL AT THIS TIME OF YEAR, AND A LITTLE WITHDRAWN AT TIMES, WHEN I SIT LOOKING OUT OVER THE MOOR, WITH THE REFLECTION OF THE CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTS IN THE WINDOW, AND THE FLICKER OF CANDLE LIGHT DANCING A FESTIVE JIG, IN THE DRAFT FROM THE WINDOW. THE ONLY WAY I HAVE EVER GOT ALONG WITH FAMILY MEMBERS, AND THEIR CHRISTMAS-GIFTING AMBITIONS, IS TO ANNUALLY REQUEST, INSTEAD OF NEW ITEMS AS OFFERINGS, TO FIND ME A GOOD OLD BOOK I DON'T PRESENTLY OWN, OR SOMETHING OF CONSIDERABLE VINTAGE THAT WEARS ITS HERITAGE PROUDLY. AS A CAREER ANTIQUE DEALER, COLLECTOR, WE SURROUND OURSELVES WITH HISTORY BECAUSE IT'S WHAT WORKS FOR US. SUZANNE IS PARTIAL TO ANTIQUE JEWELLRY, AND FABRIC. THE BOYS, ANDREW AND ROBERT, ARE ROUGHLY THE SAME, PREFERRING A VINTAGE GIFT VERSUS SOMETHING NEW....ALTHOUGH NEW MUSIC EQUIPMENT HAS ITS PLACE. EACH ONE OF US, ENJOY ANYTHING VINTAGE THAT HAS PROVENANCE.....MEANING A CONNECTION WITH A PERSON THAT CAN BE DOCUMENTED, AND ITS LEGACY PRESERVED. WE HAVE THIS KIND OF MATERIAL COMING TO US REGULARLY, AND THERE ARE CERTAIN PIECES, I HAVE TO OWN, PLAIN AND SIMPLY. I CALL IT A SPIRITUAL CONNECTION, OR AN ENCHANTED PIECE (SUCH AS WITH SOMETHING AS PERSONAL AS A CUSTOMIZED CANE), AND MOST RECENTLY, WE ACQUIRED A PHOTOGRAPH ALBUM DATING BACK TO 1953, SHOWING SOME OF THE ITEMS WE HAD PURCHASED FROM THE ESTATE. IN ONE PICTURE, A NEW BETTY CROCKER COOKBOOK IS SHOWN BENEATH THE CHRISTMAS TREE, IN THIS LADY'S APARTMENT, SITTING ATOP THE WRAPPING, WHICH UNDOUBTEDLY HAD JUST MOMENTS EARLIER, BEEN RIPPED OFF THE PACKAGE. WE NOW OWN THAT PARTICULAR COOKBOOK. EVERY TIME I LOOK AT THE ALBUM, I FEEL LIKE A VOYEUR INTO SOMEONE ELSE'S LIFE, BUT I COULD NOT EVEN THINK OF SELLING THIS BOOK OF MEMORIES, INCLUDING PHOTOGRAPHS OF TOMBSTONES IN ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, IN WASHINGTON, WHERE LOVED ONES WERE BURIED. I PLAN TO OPEN UP THE BOOK ON CHRISTMAS DAY, TO THE PAGE OF PHOTOGRAPHS, DEPICTING THAT FAMILY'S SIMPLE CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMASES, FROM 1953 TO 1957. I CAN'T REALLY EXPLAIN WHY I NEED TO DO THIS, BUT ALL OUR FAMILY MEMBERS FEEL THE SAME ABOUT THE CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMAS; THAT TRADITION TRUMPS WHAT MIGHT BE CONSIDERED THE "MODERN" PROTOCOL OF SEASONAL FARE. THE "EVERYTHING NEW" IS BEST PROTOCOL. WE ALL FIND CHRISTMAS A SENTIMENTAL TIME, EXPLAINING THE AGE-OLD ORNAMENTS ON THE TREE, AND SCATTERED AROUND THE HOUSE, THAT HAVE NO REAL MONETARY VALUE.....BUT SPEAK VOLUMES ABOUT ALL THOSE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS IN OUR FAMILY'S PAST.....ON OUR RESPECTIVE SIDES. I CAN REMEMBER STORIES CONNECTED TO AT LEAST HALF WHAT I CAN SEE, EASILY FROM MY CHAIR, WHICH EXPLAINS WHY SUZANNE OFTEN FINDS ME DAYDREAMING AWAY THE WINTER'S EVE. I LOVE IT. IT'S WHAT I WANT TO DO AT CHRISTMAS. DWELL IN THE PAST..... HALF THE TIME. THE OTHER HALF....MAKING FAMILY HISTORY TO RECALL LATER.

     IN THE 1820'S, AMERICAN AUTHOR, WASHINGTON IRVING, WROTE ABOUT THE CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS HELD AT "BRACEBRIDGE HALL," THE BRITISH COUNTRYSIDE ESTATE OWNED BY SQUIRE BRACEBRIDGE AND FAMILY. HE DID SO AS PART OF THE BOOK, "BRACEBRIDGE HALL," AND HE USED THE NARRATOR, GEOFFREY CRAYON, "THE TRAVELLER," AS THE VOYEUR, OF THE TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION, AS DEMANDED BY THE SQUIRE FOR THE GREAT COUNTRYSIDE ESTATE. BUT IT WAS REALLY IRVING HIMSELF, POINTING OUT HOW BADLY CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS WERE ERODING, EVEN BY THE 1820'S, WHEN THE BOOK WAS PUBLISHED. IRVING FELT THAT IT WAS A GREAT LOSS TO CIVILIZATION, TO LOSE THESE HANDED-DOWN TRADITIONS, DESPITE HOW THE WORLD AND SOCIAL NORMS HAD CHANGED OVER THE CENTURIES. HE USED SQUIRE BRACEBRIDGE, TO POINT OUT, JUST HOW USEFUL AND MEANINGFUL THOSE TIRED OLD TRADITIONS COULD BE, IF THOROUGHLY PRESENTED TO EVEN THE MODERN AUDIENCE OF THE 1820'S. CONSIDER THIS, WHILE THINKING ABOUT THE TIMES, EVEN THIS CHRISTMAS, WHEN YOU COMPLAINED ABOUT TERRIBLE SEASONAL ADVERTISING ON TELEVISION, OR THE MATERIALISTIC REALITIES OF MODERN CELEBRATION; WITH A LOT LESS SPIRITUALITY, AND SOCIAL INTERACTION..... AS WAS ONCE SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE CHRISTMAS TRADITION, OF GOODWILL TOWARD MAN. I BECOME DISGUSTED WITH COMMERCIALISM AT CHRISTMAS, BY MID NOVEMBER THESE DAYS, AND LEARN HOW TO TUNE-OUT WHAT I DON'T LIKE, BY THE EARLY PART OF DECEMBER. BY THIS POINT, I'M ABLE TO DISMISS THEM ENTIRELY. WE DON'T ADVERTISE OUR STORE, EXCEPT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SO WE DON'T IMPOSE UPON YOU, TO SHOP WITH US. WE DON'T BOAST ABOUT BEING THE BEST BUSINESS IN TOWN, OR HAVING THE BEST PRICES ON THE BEST INVENTORY. WE LIKE TO THINK WE'RE EXCEPTIONAL IN SOME WAYS, BUT WE'VE ALWAYS BELIEVED OUR CUSTOMERS WOULD GRADE US IN THIS REGARD.    BUT IT DOESN'T IMPRESS ON ME KINDLY WHATSOEVER, YEAR BY YEAR, TO SEE HOW RAPIDLY CHRISTMAS HAS BEEN MORPHED BY BIG BUSINESS, INTO AN ORGY OF SPENDING; WHEN TRADITION ITSELF, PLACED FAR MORE EMPHASIS ON FRIENDSHIP AND NEIGHBORLINESS; SOCIAL GATHERINGS, COMMUNITY INITIATIVES TO HELP THE LESS FORTUNATE; AND THE SHARED FOOD AND BEVERAGE, AS CRAYON WITNESSED IN THE GREAT HALL, OVERSEEN BY SQUIRE BRACEBRIDGE.....WHERE EVEN THE YULE LOG IN THE FIRE WAS HIGHLY SIGNIFICANT OF THE FESTIVE SEASON, AND THE WASSAIL BOWL HELD SOMETHING SPECIAL BEYOND ITS LIQUID CONTENTS. BEING THAT OF SHARED FRIENDSHIP AND GOODWILL. A TIME WHEN SEASONAL TREATS AND ABUNDANCE ON THE GROANING BOARDS, REPRESENTED THE GOOD CHEER OF THE CHRISTMAS DINNER; WITHOUT EVEN ONE PRESENT BEING EXCHANGED BETWEEN THE GUESTS. WHEN YOU SEE FILM CLIPS, ON THE EVENING NEWS, OF FRENZIED, EXHAUSTED SHOPPERS, TRUNDLING NERVOUSLY AROUND MALLS, BECAUSE SOCIAL CONVENTION DEMANDS GIFT-GIVING, I HONESTLY FEEL SORRY FOR THEM; BECAUSE IT HAS WOEFULLY BECOME A CHRISTMAS NIGHTMARE, NOT A PLEASURE. THERE ARE THOSE WHO ENJOY SHOPPING, AND FEEL THAT IT DOES GET THEM INTO THE SPIRIT, BUYING GIFTS FOR OTHERS. IT'S THE WAY WE SHOP. WE DON'T BUY GIFTS OUT OF A SENSE OF URGENCY OR FEEL ANY STRESS, TRYING TO FILL A LIST TO SATISFY EVERYONE. WE LIKE TO BE THOUGHTFUL ABOUT OUR GIFT-GIVING, AND EACH PIECE WILL, I GUARANTEE, HAVE AN INTERESTING PROVENANCE ATTACHED, TO ITS VINTAGE REALITIES. WE ARE DIFFERENT....THAT'S FOR SURE. BUT WE ARE HUGELY TRADITIONAL, AND WE DON'T FIND IT DIFFICULT AT ALL, TO ADHERE TO THE CHRONICLE OF HISTORY, AS MR.IRVING SENSED OF THE TIME; AGREEING WITH THE CONCERNS ABOUT FAILING OBSERVANCES, AND GROWING DISRESPECT FOR THE OLD WAYS.

    FOR ONE THING, I ALWAYS READ ALOUD, A FEW CHOICE PASSAGES WRITTEN BY THE GOOD MR. IRVING, AND CHARLES DICKENS, ON CHRISTMAS EVE, JUST TO REMIND US ALL, OF THE TRUE SPIRITUAL, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RECOGNITION OF THE OCCASION.....AS IT WAS SEEN AND LIVED LONG BEFORE WE ARRIVED IN THIS MORTAL COIL. HAVING A TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS, MEANS MORE THAN HAVING A HOMESTEAD JAMMED FULL OF DECORATIONS. IT STARTS AND ENDS, WITH KINDNESSES BESTOWED.....BENEVOLENCE, SHARING, AND NEIGHBORLINESS. IT IS AN UNDER-APPRECIATED CELEBRATION, WITHOUT THESE QUALITIES OF HUMANITY.

     THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF GRAVENHURST RESIDENTS THIS CHRISTMAS, WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS; CHILDREN WHO WILL FIND PRESENTS UNDER THE TREE, WHO WOULD HAVE OTHERWISE FOUND NOTHING.....BECAUSE FELLOW CITIZENS, BUSINESSES AND INDUSTRY, OFFERED GENEROUS ASSISTANCE TO GROUPS LIKE THE SALVATION ARMY, AND OUR COMMUNITY CHURCHES. COMMUNITY DINNERS WILL BE SHARED WITH THOSE WITHOUT MEANS TO FINANCE THEIR OWN, AND ONCE AGAIN, WE WILL EXPERIENCE WHAT KIND OF HOMETOWN THIS REALLY IS.     WHEN ON OCCASION, WE FIND OURSELVES BECOMING ANGRY ABOUT CERTAIN LOCAL AFFAIRS, IT'S SUCH A PLEASURABLE REALITY, TO KNOW JUST HOW FAR THE HAND OF FRIENDSHIP REACHES, TO ASSIST CITIZENS IN NEED. I KNOW FROM INSIDE SOURCES, HOW MANY CITIZENS ARE HELPED BY THE GENEROSITY OF GOOD NEIGHBORS, AND I FIND IT ALL A GREAT REKINDLING OF CHRISTMAS SPIRIT AND TRADITION.....THE WAY I LIKE IT MOST OF ALL.

     THANK YOU, CITIZENS OF GRAVENHURST, AND MUSKOKA GENERALLY, FOR ONCE AGAIN, COMING FORWARD, TO EXTEND ASSISTANCE TO THOSE IN GREAT NEED. THERE'S A LOT TO BE SAID FOR PRESERVING TRADITIONS…..AND IN MY MIND, IT'S THIS ACT OF COMMUNITY BENEVOLENCE, THAT IS MOST ENDEARING.....AND ENCOURAGING, WHEN THINKING ABOUT HOW WE WILL COPE WITH FUTURE STRESSES. COMING TOGETHER AS WE HAVE THIS CHRISTMAS, AND FOR MANY CHRISTMASES PAST, SHOWS JUST HOW SMALL AND INSIGNIFICANT OUR POLITICAL IMPASSE IS, COMPARED TO THE THUNDEROUS WILL OF THE TOWNSFOLK, SHOWN TIME AND AGAIN, HIGHLY CAPABLE OF BASHING THROUGH OBSTACLES, AND OVERTAKING THE INDIFFERENCE OF THE FEW, WITH A DETERMINED, COMPASSIONATE MARCH FORWARD. THE CHALLENGE TO COMPLACENCY AND STATUS QUO, TO ADDRESS, FIRST HAND, INEFFICIENCIES; TO HELP BRIDGE THE CRACKS AND HOLES IN THE FAILING CIRCUMSTANCE OF OUR SOCIAL WELFARE.....IN A WAY THAT THE WHOLE COMMUNITY BENEFITS IN KIND, FROM A DEEP WELL OF GENEROSITY AND CARING....THAT COMES FROM HEART AND SOUL, NOT A POLITICAL AGENDA. THIS IS THE TRUE GRAVENHURST. THE ONE THAT IS OFTEN OBSCURED BY THE FOG OF POLITICS, THE PREOCCUPATION WITH THIN FACADES, AND RELIANCE ON RIDICULOUS PROPAGANDA.....TO MAKE US SOMETHING WE'RE NOT! I'M PROUD TO BE AMONGST SUCH CARING CITIZENS, WHO ARE MAKING SUCH AN ENORMOUS CONTRIBUTION, TO THE REAL AND TRUE PROGRESS OF OUR COMMUNITY......LOOKING AFTER OUR OWN; AS WE HAVE, GOING AS FAR BACK IN HISTORY AS YOU WISH TO TRAVEL......AND I, FOR ONE, HAVE TRAVELLED FAR. AS A MODERN DAY GEOFFREY CRAYON, I AM PLEASED TO NARRATE THIS CHRISTMAS STORY TO YOU.....AND TRUST, YOU WILL HAVE, AS WELL, A HAPPY AND CONTENTING MERRY CHRISTMAS, IN THE TRADITION OF GOODWILL, WE ALL APPRECIATE AT THIS FESTIVE TIME OF THE ROLLING YEAR.

     I AM WRITING THIS IN THE COMFORTABLE ENVIRONS OF SON ROBERT'S MUSIC STUDIO, ON MUSKOKA ROAD, AND WHAT A LOVELY DAY IT IS FOR SITTING AND WATCHING THE SHOPPERS AND TRAVELLERS, CARRYING ON THEIR BUSINESS AND PLEASURES OF THE DAY. IT IS BUSTLING OUT THERE. IT'S NICE TO SEE. BUT I'M NOT GIVING UP MY PLACE IN THIS COZY HOLLOW, TO JOIN THEM JUST NOW! LIKE MR. CRAYON, I SHALL CONTENT MYSELF AS THE VOYEUR, UNTIL I'M FORCED TO RE-LOCATE AT CLOSING TIME.