ZEPHYR & SANDFORD by Pat Asling

Is it over? Will there be any more? Are we there yet? All questions I am sure many are asking about our weather after having snow fall on Easter Sunday morning. When will this long winter end? Never mind this long COVID pestilence.

According to the forecast, we will get at least one more snowfall. Fortunately, the ground has warmed up a little, and it melts quickly.

Amazingly all my spring flowers are pushing further and further into the air each time I look at them, and with a few sunny warmer days, there will be many flowers to draw our attention.

My first female redwing blackbird showed up one day last week; I have not seen her since, but I expect she is already sitting on a nest in the reeds. More mallards and a few geese spent some time floating around, and a male wood duck dropped in once, a beautiful sight! Someone even saw an osprey floating over the pond, but my fish may not be big enough to entice him to take the plunge. A few turkey vultures are also floating overhead, looking for a meal.

Birthdays this week include a variety of ages. Ian Findlay celebrated a birthday, but with his healing hand, it may not have been as festive as he had expected. Best wishes for quick healing as well as birthday wishes. Mary Dube has not lived in Zephyr for a few years now but does live on a farm in southwestern Ontario and celebrated her birthday there with new friends.

Happy birthday to Paul Ross! Paul is one of the sons of Morley and Laura Ross, who grew up in Leaskdale, went to Uxbridge High school and still lives in Uxbridge, keeping an eye on mother Laura. Happy birthday to another local man, one I watched grow up. David Ball grew up on the 6th with his parents, Alan and Annabell, living next door to his grandparents. He went to school in Scott Central and Uxbridge High and helped his father on the farm, taking it over altogether when his parents retired and moved into Douglas Crossing. Wife LeeAnn is a nurse who has worked tirelessly during the pandemic!

Sandra and Steve Neilsen moved to Sandford many years ago and immediately became part of the church and community. They became very good friends, as did their children, Matt and Kirsten. Sandra was a retired nurse. They moved from here to a suburb of Ottawa and from there to the west, spending the summers in Alberta and winters in Vancouver, where Sandie celebrated her latest birthday.

Andrea Arkell might be known to some as a travel agent, a job she did for a number of years and still seems to be fitting in. Lately, she has taken on more to become an office administrator and works with Markham Stouffville Hospital. Suzi Hiltz grew up on the farm just east of Sandford and went to Scott Central and Uxbridge High. Somewhere along the line, she met Mark Stanley, had several sons and now grandchildren and still farms. Happy birthday to all these great people!

This was a bit of a social week as on Monday, our Xi Epsilon Upsilon Sorority ladies met for lunch and enjoyed a great get-together now that most have returned for the south. On Thursday, the United Church Women (UCW) ladies met for lunch and a decision-making process. Sadly it was decided that we were too few in number anymore to continue as a formal group, although the hope is to meet periodically as a social unit.

On Tuesday, the Unified Board met for a long session as this was the first meeting they had following the changed format for governance. There were many items to discuss, and we moved ahead with the two churches working even closer together. They plan to meet once a month. Another group of people are planning the upcoming services, which alternated monthly from church to church.

This Easter Sunday morning, church services were again at Zephyr with Rev. Dr. Bill Fritz as our guest minister. It is always a pleasure to listen to Bill and his many years of message delivery is a joy to hear. It was great to have his wife Joan with us as well. Music for the service was provided by Ruth Baker and her younger granddaughter Emma, this time on her violin. Emma hasn’t been heard for a while, but she is also doing an excellent job for one so young. Our thanks to them!

Their special music was the beautiful hymn “Worthy is the Lord”. It especially caught my attention because of the music as well as the words, but just a couple of days ago, a Belizean friend posted it on Facebook as one of the songs I had sung with him and the Belmopan Choral Society a number of years ago, as we toured the country. What great memories!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend with family and friends. I know several had big family gatherings planned; I hope they went well. Others had to cancel because someone in the family tested positive, a big disappointment. Friday morning, I had the pleasure of attending the Good Friday service, led by Rev. Edith Ann Shantz, and Food Grains Bank breakfast at Epsom. Wonderful to see several old friends I hadn’t seen for some time.

The Foodgrains project started in Epsom about 1986 with my dad, Don Asling, Floyd Evans and Orvan Brethour. My nephew Rob Ashton is now one of the coordinators.

#sandford #shorelines #Zephyr