Who Says You Can't Go Home

"Just a hometown boy, born a rolling stone,
Who says you can't go home."
                                            - Who Says You Can't Go Home by Bon Jovi and Sugarland

I'm sad I couldn't be there for this community photo

Tonight I wrote a little story that I submitted to nominate Wolfe Island for the Kraft Hockeyville 2011. In the story you are supposed to show how your community demonstrates a passion for hockey, a sense of community, as well as originality. I was happy to write something to help better the chances for Wolfe Island to win the contest because I truly love that place. I struggled to stay within the word limit because I had a lot to say about my beloved community. A little bit of homesickness kicked in as I thought about all the memories I had about playing hockey on our farm rink as well as the rink in the village. I never got to use my skates this winter.
As I wrote about the strong sense of community that the island maintains I began to think about how great that place really is. This feeling only got stronger as I skimmed through the many other stories submitted by other islanders listed on the website. It's the people that make that place so awesome. I consider myself extremely lucky to have grown up in a community that stresses such a prominent emphasis on lending a helping hand and supporting one another.
So I chose this song to represent my loyalty to Wolfe Island and how I will always be happy to call it my home. I love how the song says "I'm just a hometown boy born a rolling stone" as well as, "You can take the home from the boy but not the boy from his home." I really feel like that describes me. I have a strong sense of where I came from and I will always stay true to my islander roots but I also have such a grave desire to travel and keep moving. I'm a hometown girl out in the big world!
I also love the line in the song that says,

"There's only one place they call me one of their own."

This is Wolfe Island alright! Anyone born and raised on the island knows that you are only an islander - or "one of them" - if you too were born and raised there. I am proud to say that I fit the criteria.
Although I am keen on traveling and I am not ready to settle down any time soon, there is a good chance that when I do make the decision to stay in one spot it will be either on Wolfe Island or very close to it. After all, I wouldn't want to prove my graduating yearbook wrong by not being the one "Most Likely to Live on Wolfe Island for the Rest of Her Life." There is something to be said about the feeling of belonging that that island gives its residents. You know when someone asks you to list who you are? Well, I'd say "an islander" would be in my top five answers. I think it's because the island has such an influential community that we all have strong recognition that we are part of it. I doubt people from bigger cities would so readily claim that they are from their hometown as one of their top descriptions of who they are. But, that's just my theory. All I know is that I will always be an islander!

Just in case you're interested, here is the little story I submitted.


Kraft HockeyIsland 2011

I submitted this picture of our farm along with my story

I grew up in a large family on a farm on Wolfe Island. It wouldn’t take much to convince anyone that being raised alongside ten siblings on a big dairy farm was anything other than a never-ending stream of recreational fun. Whether it was spring, summer, fall or winter that countryside life always provided for great outdoor adventures.

There was one perfect spot, just behind the milkhouse, no matter what the weather was like, you’d be sure to find us having a ball. That spot was “The Rink” and that’s what it was called all year round. Sure, it came in handy during the off-season, especially for tadpole hunting and frog catching but we all knew what it was really there for. Every winter, the anticipation would end. Once the water froze over, we got out our hand-me-down skates, brought up the barrel of hockey sticks and headed down to The Rink.

We would roll over four tractor tires, using two for the sides of each “hockey net”. I remember when I was younger, having seven older siblings, five of them boys, these hockey games were riveting – as you can only imagine. As my three younger siblings grew into each pair of passed down skates, it was a great privilege to teach them how to get around on that ice with stick in hand so they too could join in the games.

Luckily, if the ice on our rink wasn’t up to good hockey-playing standards, our passion for hockey could also come alive when we took the short drive down to the village. We would love to go to the community rink to play along with all our friends. Even when there was an intense hockey game going on, others who just wanted to skate and watch could keep to the outside and circle around. As such a small tight-knit community, Wolfe Island has, and always will, cherish the game of hockey as a reason for everyone to get together and have a great time. And there are so many people that contribute to making the game so readily available for everyone by maintaining the condition of the rink, organizing community events, and setting up a daily schedule for playing times.

Maintaining the hockey rink is just one example of the strong sense of community bond that Wolfe Island shares. Personally, I have seen countless, unbelievable acts of kindness by the members of this great place I am happy to call home. Whether it entails numerous men pitching in to bring in a fellow farmer’s harvest after he has fallen ill or a group of women putting on a community-wide baby shower for a couple expecting triplets – Wolfe Island never fails to step up to the plate when the neighbourly duty calls.

Wolfe Island is such a wonderful community for so many reasons and I can say, without a doubt, that we would be so honoured and extremely humbled to receive the title of Kraft Hockeyville 2011.