Contrast

The green needles of a young spruce tree contrasted against the orange berries of a sea buckthorn bush.

This is the female of the sea buckthorn species and all those berries are loaded with a multitude of nutrients.

Photographed near Alvena, Saskatchewan on October 27, 2019.

Life Moves On...

This monument (dated 1918) sits along a fenceline near Stornoway, Saskatchewan.

I had been taking photos of a pioneer cemetery and just as I was returning to the car a man driving a grain truck rounded the corner and stopped to see if everything was okay.  I assured him that all was well and we commenced on chatting.  He gave me some history of the area and mentioned this monument which was just a few miles away.  The monument is an acknowledgement to the early Ukrainian pioneers that settled the area.

Just in passing he mentioned that the monument was located at the same spot where his grandfather had rolled a horse and buggy, broke his neck and died soon afterwards.  Life moves on...       

Photographed on a very cold January 5, 2020.

Holy Trinity at Tarnopol

A crisp and cold day in north-central Saskatchewan.  The sun was trying hard to break through the clouds.

This is Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Cemetery at Tarnopol, an area that was predominantly settled by Ukrainian and Polish immigrants.

The congregation was formed in 1920 and held services in the Ukrainian National Hall until 1925 at which time a church was constructed.

A new church (the one shown in these photographs) began construction in 1962 and was opened in 1964.

The central dome and cupolas topped with wrought iron crosses.

Just about everything was white.

Some shots of the church and bell tower.

All the headstones and trees were covered in hoar frost.

The cornerstone laid in 1962.

I really love these handcrafted domes.

The main marker for the church and cemetery.

A close-up of the main gate.

A shot from the road passing the church.

The simple front gate...the church is mostly hidden behind the big spruce trees.

They don't make 'em like this anymore.

Photographed on October 26, 2019.

Bluebird on a Blue Truck

One day out at Saint Margaret's Church I noticed that a bluebird was attracted to the mirrors on my truck.  The windows were rolled down and he would fly through the truck cab from one mirror to the other, take a look at himself and then fly off only to return a little later and repeat his actions.

Photographed at Saint Margaret's Church and Cemetery in the Cypress Hills of Alberta on June 18, 2017.

Three at Mossleigh

The colour of these elevators is a dead giveaway...they were all Parrish & Heimbecker grain elevators at one time.

These are still "true to their colours..."

...but this one has new silver and blue metal siding.  That is, except for the old six-sided annex which matches its neighbours in colour.

Photographed at Mossleigh, Alberta on October 13, 2018.

Peekaboo

A baby's headstone in Handsworth Cemetery.

Photographed near the Hamlet of Handsworth, Saskatchewan on December 16, 2018.

Whitesand

The sun reflecting the window-shape behind the altar...I couldn't have planned for a better photo.

The church is undergoing a renovation and the interior has been stripped down to the bare boards.  The sunshine on the aged wood looks warm and alluring.

A shot of the church and gate from the road allowance.

The engraved granite sign inset onto the centre pillar of the gate posts.  This spot has been used primarily by Swedish and Danish immigrants for well over a century.

A small grouping of headstones in the cemetery.

Take note of the tiny white crosses marking "unknown" gravesites.  

The church has new metal siding but the original wooden-framed windows have been retained...the sun reflecting in the windows brings the scene to life.

Don't forget to sign the guest book (on the altar).

Whitesand Lutheran Church and Scandanavian Cemetery was photographed near Sheho, Saskatchewan on January 6, 2020.

Box 172

Some things don't change...well, not much anyway.

I grew up on a small farm just east of Midale, Saskatchewan.  At that time, from the late 1950's to the early 1970's, the post office was the centre of all written communication.  Going to pick up the mail was a big deal...letters and cards written by hand, parcels from mail order catalogues and of course bills and payments of all sorts.  One day when I was about ten years old, my parents and I were parked outside the post office and I was finally "old enough" to take the mail key and pick up the mail all by myself. 

Over forty years later I returned to that same post office to see what had changed...and it really hadn't changed much at all.

Above is a photo of our old post office box.

This is the same mail sorting desk with the same green Arborite® desk top that has been in the post office lobby for decades.

More mail boxes and the community bulletin board which displayed an invitation to a baby shower, a perogie supper at the senior's hall, a reading club and many others.  The notices are new but everything else is just the way I remember it.

Mail your letters here.  The spring on this drop box was awfully strong when I was a kid and it's still a tough one to open.

The only noticeable change I saw was to the exterior of the building.  The upper part of the front facade used to have a stained wooden finish and now it's been painted white while the lower part has been covered in vinyl siding.

All these years later I still have a post office box and some days it's still a big deal to go pick up the mail.

Photographed on October 18, 2017.

End of the Day

Sunset at Lac Qui Parle Lutheran Church...the end of a long and enjoyable day on the road.

Photographed near Torquay, Saskatchewan on October 17, 2017.

"Woof"

I spent the better part of a week last winter touring the churches and cemeteries in Lamont County, Alberta.

On my way from one place to another I met this guy.  He looks like a cross between a Norwegian Elkhound and a Golden Labrador Retriever.  He stopped for a few pats on the head and a sniff or two.  Once he was satisfied that I wasn't up to any mischief he gave me a "woof" and went back to the farmhouse and I was on my way to the next church.  I like meeting the locals...even if we don't speak the same language.

Photographed near Star, Alberta on January 6, 2019.