Chapman Trailblazers - Clue #4

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Image

Item Type

Photographs

Description

WISH Clue # 4
Photo and story by Samantha Harris, President of Chapman Branch WI
We live in a small enough community that, most places we go, we know someone or someone who knows us. By the Way Cafe in Tweed is a town hotspot for visitors and residents. Most days you will walk by there and see a crowd out front and on the side patio. Various groups of people will be inside laughing, drinking coffee and sharing stories. It was a rainy day when we all had time to get together as a team. Our captain brought each of us our special bookmarks and the extra one to share. We were ready to chat someone up but then…no one came in after us.
We didn’t mind coming out of our homes in the rain but it would seem that most, even regular customers, took the dreary day as a sign to stay home and stay dry. Pedestrians were infrequent and kind of jogging from one place to the next. There was a couple that came in but they were taking their beverages to go. They were in and out but then just one customer came in and took off her coat and placed her regular lunch order. Charmaine knew her by name, Betty LaLonde and in her usual casually cheerful voice said, “Hi Betty, I was wondering if I could sit with you while you have your lunch and talk to you about the Women’s Institute.” Betty responded, “Do I have to sign up for anything?”, with a smile on her face and a wink while nodding. We introduced ourselves formally and Betty shared some names of people she has known that were a part of the Women’s Institute. She recalled seeing the meeting minutes in the Tweed News, so we weren’t unknown to her, but she still wanted to know more about why and what we do. Charmaine then offered her the Women's Institute Bookmark. After a bit of conversation, Betty expressed to us that she really liked this idea that women are still gathering and sharing skills and stories related to the home. In her lifetime, she felt as if she had seen such a decline in social and home skills in the generations younger than her.
We all finished up our coffees as the skies started to lighten and the rain finally subsided. It was that bright shine of light that got us up out of our seats and ready to move on to the next part of our day. Not before heartfelt thanks and expressions of joy having met new faces were shared.

Notes

Submission part of the WISH challenge for WI's 125th anniversary.

Date of Publication

Sep 2022

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