Left to ourselves we would not have done as many things or gone so many places. But Anne likes to keep moving, to say nothing of Roma. So we’ve fished, canoed, hiked, climbed Sleeping Bear Dune, visited the Cherry Republic (visas not required but VISA useful), gone swimming, eaten at A&W International Headquarters, and so on.
While we’ve been here, carpenters have installed new picture windows on both levels of the cottage. The original ones had served well beyond their useful life — some of the wood had rotted. The cottage is up for sale at what seems an outrageous price, in spite of which there have already been lookers. Compared to the asking price on the house next door (not the new one, but the one on the north side), it seems like a bargain.
Until Grandpa met with a real estate agent in Frankfort, he thought the cottage might not be marketable and seriously entertained the idea of giving it to son or grandson.
As we clean up and get ready to go home today, it is sad to think that we have probably had our last stay at the Downs, our last hike over the dunes to the beach or to Pt. Betsie, our last sweeping view from the deck of the Manitou Islands and Sleeping Bear Dune and glorious sunsets, our last picnics on the deck, and great feasts around the massive dining table made from a section of a bowling lane. The once bottomless cookie can sits empty on the kitchen counter.
Mommer taught her grandchildren to golf on the championship course (of which she was a champion player) that hugs the hills and winds through the woods of the Downs. Our sons Andrew and Peter made the cottage their home for a month when Kathy and I went to the Far East in 1986. Peter spent a summer here when he had an internship at Traverse Magazine and commuted to Traverse City.
So we shed a tear for the Downs cottage, a place made sacred to us, and for ourselves, all the while thankful for generous grandparents who have freely given us such privilege.
Our grief is mitigated by the fact that the Crystal Lake cottage is still there and will be a summer destination for years to come and accumulate memories all its own. Don’t pity us overmuch.