First Words – Fall 2021

The timing of our Fall issue is always associated with back-to-school preparations, which somehow seem to touch all of us at Watershed as we watch our children grow.

I’ve had a bird’s-eye view of Meg’s twins – Megan and Matt – as they started school each September from the time they were in kindergarten to when they piled into the packed van for university. In the early years, Megan was shy, tiny but quietly determined; Matt was ready for adventure with a twinkle in his eye. When Matt wasn’t at her side, Megan’s best friend Bea the bunny was always in her backpack as backup.

On the Friday before Labour Day, I was at Meg’s place, putting the finishing touches on the magazine before it went to press. My thoughts wandered to the sense of anticipation that crackles in the air as soon as September pops up on the calendar. Steph’s daughter Annabel would be heading off to her second year of high school and Chris’s daughter Laura would start law school at U of T. Matt was already planning a trip out west in his vintage Westphalia. I was jolted back to reality when Meg’s phone rang: a FaceTime call from Megan. She had just finished the oral presentation for her MA on Social Justice. It was one of the best fly-on-the-wall moments imaginable. (Check out our Habitat article – apparently flies do feel!) Megan had scored an A+. Meg was literally bursting with pride beside me. When the dust settled, we had a cup of tea and reminisced about how quickly kids grow up, how they change and how our lives change. I asked Meg if Bea the bunny was still around and she laughed, “Of course, Megan wouldn’t go anywhere without Bea.” I smiled and thought, thank goodness some things never change. I smiled again and thought, the world will be a better place because of Megan and Bea.