Sentinel Pine
Loon Lake, Ontario - 2005

A beautiful pine tree that grows on the property of an abandoned cottage next to the one we rent. To the best of my ability to tell it's been over 15 years since anyone has been anywhere near this property. Looking in the windows you can see neatly made beds, patio furniture stacked up and a kitchen left neat and tidy; it appears that someone closed the cottage one year and then vanished.

I wonder about this tree and the role it played in the lives of the people who owned this cottage, did they sit under it for shade, did kids climb it, was it used to tie up lines for wet towels? It would have grown considerably since anyone last appreciated it's presence and it stands as a sentinel looking out over Loon Lake.