A
t 72, I have travelled to many
places around the world in my
time so it wasn’t unusual for me
to fly from Alberta to Los Osos,
California, to spend a week with a friend.
It was a Sunday afternoon in July, 2018,
when my friend suggested a road trip, part-
ly sightseeing but mostly to visit his family
in Atascadero, a city in San Luis Obispo,
California. This trip changed my life, some-
thing I didn’t think was possible at my age.
The scenery was beautiful, rolling hills
and open grassland, definitely different
from our Alberta scenery. We arrived in
Atascadero and a few minutes later, we
were turning down a residential street that
looked like a country lane. We drove into
the family’s driveway and what greeted us
was a very large, very old, black walnut
tree. I was sure there were many stories
this stately tree could tell.
The house matched the tree, it was more
than 100 years old. We went up the wooden
steps onto the porch. A very ordinary porch
I thought, but now I know that was not the
case. This porch was special. This porch
would change my life.We went into the house, which had its
own story to tell. It had been through a
major fire and had been rebuilt. The porch,
along with portions of the house, had sur-
vived. It had guts—it had wanted to live on
because it hadn’t finished its journey. A fire
was not going to change that.
It was very warm that July afternoon, so
we went back out to sit on the porch. It
would have been unbearable had it not
been for a spray of water coming from a
tube that surrounded the top of the porch.
The cool water dripped on everything and
everyone but no one minded, it provided
welcome relief from the heat.
It did not take long before drinks were be-
ing poured, pot was being passed around and
the music started. I sat mesmerized. In all my
years, I had never taken part in a hippy-like
get-together. With two guitar players, a
drummer and a singer, the party was well on
its way. They didn’t need anything else or
anyone else to make this scene complete.
Sitting on the porch that day did indeed
change my life. These people were enjoying
a simple life, music obviously being their
first love, not bothered by their personalSometimes, a change of scenery gives
you a whole new perspective on life
by Lori Shea, formerly of Calgary
THE PORCH
ABOUT THE AUTHORLori was born and raised
in Canada, where she spent most of her life—with the
exception of living in New Zealand for six years. In
early 2018, she began visiting friends in California, with
many visits to “The Porch.” She was so impressed with
how the people she met could forget everyday
issues and just enjoy their time with friends
and family that she decided to write about
it. She recently married Patrick Shea on
“The Porch” and, both in their 70s, they’re
now living the good life in California.50 More of Our Canada JULY 2019
WRITER’S BLOCK