Surprises

PH and I were gone for a few days last week reacquainting ourselves with this bright thing in the sky we call a sun.  It's certainly been awhile since we've seen it here in Michigan not to mention actually felt it.  Wow. It's amazing what a little sun can do to your spirits.  It felt like we were let out of months of solitary confinement and the first thing we saw was a smiling face.

 We had a lot of fun visiting PH's brother and SIL and there were a lot of firsts for me.  More on that another day.  Each day we took long walks, ate lunch, sat by or in the pool, ate dinner and played cards in the evening, watching the cruise ships leave in the morning and the ones completing their trips coming back in the evening.  It was hard to leave.


But leave we did and when we got home we were met with a surprise we knew was coming.  How can something be a surprise if you knew it was coming?

The Lowell Showboat is the icon of Lowell.  It's the emblem of the city. 

It's the backdrop of everything we hold dear. We host Santa there, hold milestone celebrations, concerts, weddings and  parties.

 It's our front porch, it's where we gather for everything.

 We knew this was coming.  It had to happen.  The old lady was falling apart from water rot and age (aren't we all?) and even as she was rendered a year ago off limits to anyone for safety reasons, and we talked about this day for a few years,this was still a shock to see a wrecker taking it down.. To look at this spot on the river and see nothing but the remaining waterwheel is a lot disconcerting.  A bit of a shock. Something we will have to get used to until our new showboat is built.   And she will be rebuilt.  Grants have been won, designs discussed, logistics considered and in about a year she will rise again and Lowell will look like Lowell once again.