The best things always seem to be surprises.
We had planned a trip to Glacier National Park for a while...just never firmed up the details. When the time finally came, Don and Carolyn Callister invited us to drive right through Glacier and spend a day in Carolyn's parents cabin just north of the park in Canada. Don is a friend from BYU and I thought it would be great just to re-connect. One night turned into two and the short stop was far better than I had ever imagined.
We had arrived just a little early for the Beazer family reunion. This is a shot of the family cabin. Heber is grandpa and the center of it all there. He's got to be the most self-sufficient man I've ever met and he's got a great sense of humor to boot. He and his sons (son in-law Don included) must have put a lot of hours, months and years into building that cabin. The cabin is hand-made from logs they cut and hauled from just 6 miles away. Stripped and shaped on site and put together according to the plans in Heber's head...he says he lost the blueprints a long time before they finished up. It's a beautiful home.
We had the pleasure of being there for the beginning of their family reunion, the likes of which I'd like to see in our family in the future. Everything there seemed a lot like that hand made cabin. Love and family bonds resulting from years of had work. It was all beautiful to feel and see the family -- and it didn't hurt to be in such an awesome place!
We had a great time there. We enjoyed the creeks, the cabin, the trampoline, fishing, etc. and had a great time playing cards when the kids went to bed. It was hard to leave. I may not have the blueprints that Heber started with, but meeting him and seeing the results of his life's work certainly adds to the vision of what I'd like to build for us. I'd never been to Canada before. I'd like to go back again and I hope I can brin a bit of what I saw there to my home here.