July 26, 2005

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  The Song of Hiawatha, a poem
  by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

  Hiawatha’s Departure
  from The Song of Hiawatha

  By the shore of Gitchie Gumee, 
  By the shining Big-Sea-Water, 
  At the doorway of his wigwam, 
  In the pleasant Summer morning, 
  Hiawatha stood and waited. 
  All the air was full of freshness, 
  All the earth was bright and joyous, 
  And before him through the sunshine, 
  Westward toward the neighboring forest 
  Passed in golden swarms the Ahmo, 
  Passed the bees, the honey-makers, 
  Burning, singing in the sunshine. 
  Bright above him shown the heavens, 
  Level spread the lake before him; 
  From its bosom leaped the sturgeon, 
  Aparkling, flashing in the sunshine; 
  On its margin the great forest 
  Stood reflected in the water, 
  Every tree-top had its shadow, 
  Motionless beneath the water. 
  From the brow of Hiawatha 
  Gone was every trace of sorrow, 
  As the fog from off the water, 
  And the mist from off the meadow. 
  With a smile of joy and triumph, 
  With a look of exultation, 
  As of one who in a vision 
  Sees what is to be, but is not, 
  Stood and waited Hiawatha. 

  We arrived home from Hawaii at about 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 23, after being up for 36 hours. On the way from the airport, I stopped and picked up the quizzes and papers that needed to be corrected from the 2 weeks of classes I had missed. Those classes happened to be the last 2 weeks of the quarter, and grades were due by noon on Friday, June 24! I also had laundry to do, my house to clean because I did not have time to clean it before we went to Hawaii, grocery shopping to do, 2 batches of cookies to bake, and packing to do because Sunday, June 26, we left for a family vacation on the North Shore of Lake Superior! In that brief time, I also had to run into the Twin Cities, more than 50 miles away, and pick up my new prescription sunglasses that had not been ready before the Hawaii trip. Guess what? I made it! Sunday morning at around 8:00, we headed out for the shores of Gitchie Gumee.

  The picture above is our daughter-in-law Jess with Jake the Giant Toddler. On the far right is our son Andy. About 10 seconds after this picture was taken, Jake ran over and jumped in the lake, crying “I’m in Gitchie Gumee!” Only a not-quite 2 year old would be so excited about standing in a lake that never gets much above 40 degrees! Actually, he wasn’t quite in Lake Superior. He was in the waters of the Gooseberry River at the point where it empties into the lake. It was still mighty chilly, though. Jake loves Gordon Lightfoot’s Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, so he was very excited. I don’t think he really understands what a shipwreck is, but he did know that he was at Gitchie Gumee!

  All 9 of us enjoy our time on the North Shore. We rent cabins at Tofte, which is about half way between Duluth and the Canadian border. There’s a lot to do there. Betsy and Madison love this alpine slide at Lutsen, just 7 miles up the road.

  

  Andy and Jake look like they are having a pretty good time, too.

  

  I don’t ride the slide. I prefer to stay on the ground and take pictures. Actually, the slide would not bother me, but you have to ride this to get to the top:

  

  Ryan does not look like he minds the ski lift at all, but his Uncle Andy seems a little concerned about keeping him in the chair. Me? I don’t do ski lifts. Height and I are not friends. It doesn’t bother the rest of the family, though. You can see Matt in the black shirt and Betsy in the pink waiting to get on the lift.

  We like to spend a day at Gooseberry Falls State Park, too. The falls are gorgeous. The water there is warm enough for the kids to enjoy a swim as long as you watch them so they do not get too close to the falls.

  

  That’s the upper falls in the picture. There is also a lower falls, and a trip over that would be a little hard on the bones.

  One of the cabins we rent has a nice stretch of lawn. Dan and Andy were enjoying playing bocce one afternoon while the kids were napping.

  

  This little fellow came to keep me company while I was lying in the hammock watching the game.

  

  He was right next to my foot when I took that picture. He would come right up and sniff you and seemed grateful for handouts.

  In the evening, there are campfires on the rocky shore in front of the cabin.

  

  That’s Dan in the green with Ryan, Matt, Jess in the gray sweatshirt, and Betsy in the Navy.

  We only had 3 days at Tofte this year, but it was a fun 3 days. We are already planning next year’s trip.

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