Following two years of living downtown, it was quite a refreshing novelty living in the country. But not too far away from anything. Stores and the mall were just a twenty minute walk away, and the bus downtown just five minutes, so it wasn't at all difficult to keep going to work every day and also to stay in contact with the street ministry and friends downtown. I was living on a wooded acre, with lots of birch and cedar trees, and I managed to cut a maze of trails in the back, making it very enjoyable for contemplative walking. I lived on a huge square block of country roads, and every day I did a walk around this block, about thirty minutes in all, followed by a walk in my homemade labyrinth in the back.
But it was not a paradise. It was nice having all this extra living space, more than I had ever had before to myself, despite the humble conditions of my little cottage. The place had four bedrooms, including a sun room that I had converted to my personal bedroom years later, when Doreen and Dianne moved in with me. More about them later. As I said, it was a rambling house, with lots of windows. It was lovely waking early every morning to the sound of birds, especially songbirds and a rooster crowing nearby. But not all was right and lovely here.
I hadn't been there three days, when I had an unpleasant run-in with my new neighbour. The power was out, and I wasn't yet sure if I just needed to change a fuse in the house or if it was in the neighbourhood. My neighbour was doing some work on his house with a power saw. Not knowing if that would affect his saw or not, I meekly asked him if he was encountering any problems with the power and electricity, because mine was out and I wasn't yet sure why. Instead of offering a helpful comment or a gesture of sympathy, he began shouting and swearing at me, and how dare I accuse him of shorting the power in my house. I was so shocked, I didn't say anything, I simply shook my head and walked quietly away. I never spoke another word to that man...."
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