Girls' Trip....

A change is as good as a rest, they say... As you no doubt have guessed, I've been away again. Darlin' daughter and I had a short "girls' trip". We headed down to Nova Scotia for a few days and got some things done in her apartment so things will be pretty much ready for her to move in, in several weeks time. Cleaning, organizing shopping, etc - all good. Since it was so great to finally have a few days of sunny warm weather, we decided to take a little jaunt down to Peggy's Cove, as Laura had only been there once before. It was such a beautiful day with blue skies and rolling surf. I could have stayed on those weather-worn rocks all day long, watching the pounding surf. What is it about watching the ocean? It's mesmorising, just like watching a bonfire, or campfire. I love the smell of the ocean, listening to the surf, watching the ever-present seagulls glide and soar on the air currents... It was a great afternoon.   Since Peggy's Cove is such a well known "representative" image when one thinks of Nova Scotia, I thought you might like to see a few of my photos from our visit...

As you leave the Cove, on your left you will see a wonderful carved mural in a granite outcrop. As you can see from the above photos, this entire area is sheer rock. (I'm amazed there is even enough soil for grass and weeds to grow.) What would you do with a 90 foot granite outcrop in your backyard? Artist William deGarthe decided to do a carving as a tribute to the community and people he loved- the hard-working fishermen of Peggy's Cove. At age 70, (in 1977) he began, with chisel and power tools to, as he put it, "release the figures sleeping in the rock for over 10 million years". Granite is not an easy rock to work with, as it is as hard as ordinary steel. So after years of study and planning, and some basic sketches, he began by outlining the figures with dark oil paint on the rock. Then he drilled holes along the outlines to weaken the rock, then used chisels and other tools to "reveal and refine" the figures. Over the next 6 years he carved 30 figures in the granite. He divided the work into three distinct sections, called Work, Bounty and Grace.

Work is the largest section, on the right- depicting the local fishermen hard at work, hauling nets, pulling a dory and using other tools of the trade to acquire their catch. Bounty, the middle section, celebrates the riches of the sea- the fish so essential to the survival of the community. The young woman carrrying the basket seen here is the famous "Peggy" who some say inspired the name of the cove.
 The section on the far left, Grace, features a guardian angel watching over a fisherman and his family. (The seagull you see there on the far left, is Joe, deGarthe's pet seagull.) Sadly, deGarthe died in 1983 before his monument was completed, but what he left behind is a work of art- a tribute to him as an artist, and to the community he loved. Be sure to see it, if you ever visit Peggy's Cove.
Many people wonder who Peggy was? One legend tells the tale of a young woman named Margaret who after being rescued from a shipwreck, settled here and fell in love with one of her rescuers. Nicknamed Peggy, this legendary woman was a source of inspiration for deGarthe.
Peggy's Cove.. a beautiful spot (as is all of Nova Scotia.) These photos have not been altered or enhanced in any way- these are the colours as we saw them that day....ah, the ocean blue!

Peace,
Linda

"The voice of the sea speaks to the soul." ~Kate Chopin