The Memory Portal

My Grandad grew up in Liverpool; a small town on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. Although he lived in Ontario when I was young, most of my memories of him are from when he moved back to the East Coast with my Nanny. They lived in a small home with green siding on a huge lot just on the town’s outer boundary. The rooms inside were dark but filled with warmth. There was a small sitting room at the back of the home where he used to sit and listen to music. He’d smoke his pipe th...ere, leaning back comfortably in his chair and staring out the window, leg crossed, pipe clasped in between his teeth with a great big grin on his face. I would watch the smoke dance up through the air and listen to his endless stories. The sweet smoky smell of pipe tobacco always takes me back to Nova Scotia. It sends me to the foggy, salty landscapes of Carter’s Beach watching Grandad hobble along, arms linked with my mother. It sends me to the dark dining room table of his home and stories of saving his icing for last when eating his cake. It sends me to the swing tied up in the large tree in his yard and me stretched out, flying through the air. It sends me to the first time we took a picture after he lost his sight, and his smile large, but eyes focused slightly left of the camera. It sends me to the time when we found him up on the roof, trying to fix something and the hysterics of worried laughter as we directed the blind man back down the ladder. It sends me into his hugs and loud cackling laughter. It makes me remember so many wonderful things.So, thank you pipe smoking men. Because of you, I have permission to relive these moments. And they are amazing. www.memoryportal.ca www.ninawriter.com See more

Looking for more "memory ghost" stories...those goosebump forming situations where you saw something or heard someone and immediately thought of someone who had passed away. Please send them my way!! Would love to share them here and on www.memoryportal.ca

On a hike this morning and I saw a bunch of birds. Then, memories of GC and PB.

amazing how a fragrance can send your mind back years and years.....

I saw a hawk today and thought of my friend Deanna. :)