With a rather graceful exit from winter and having witnessed some typical springtime winds and rains, southeast Saskatchewan is now poised to welcome a new summer with increased expectations.
It's not possible for this summer to be as harsh as last year's offering. Last year about this time, our entire region was being hammered by the beginnings of a series of devastating floods, each one adding to the woes and limiting our chances of fighting back.
After crawling out from under the mud, silt, debris and wreckage, we began the work of cleaning up after Mother Nature. Some financial resources were made available, but with anything of this nature, it's never enough. The immediate aftermath saw a launching of determined people anxious to restore some sense of normalcy to the chaotic conditions from which they had just emerged.
Restoration work began on the farms, in the rural municipalities, villages, towns and cities. Many of the finer things that summer has to offer such as gardens, summer vacations, picnics and barbecues with friends and family were eliminated from the schedule as many set about the task of basic recovery once the waters subsided.
Now we are faced with a new spring and summer and we're anxious to get on with it. We want to golf, we want to go camping or maybe celebrate a birthday or wedding in the park.
Some of that may be possible in this region this year, thanks to our hearty teams of volunteers and generous service and supply companies, but the devastation was huge and it's not going to be fixed this year or even next year and in some cases ... never.
Some things have been lost forever ... just ask those who once resided in Roche Percee or those who have viewed the remains of Woodlawn Regional Park where a huge gorge has replaced what was once a meandering minor river system. That won't be fixed anytime soon. A good portion of Woodlawn's trails, trees and camp sites were literally swept away. And that's not even approaching the problems encountered by our neighbours to the south in Minot and area.
So while a golf course is being restored, work is also underway to remove silt and debris and re-set the course in our local parks such as Woodlawn, Boundary Dam and Roche Percee.
The roads will be rutted, not everything will be smooth sailing, but there will be a sense of distinct recovery this spring and summer. Not all the acreage will be available and ready for new crops this year, but there will be more than last year.
We're not back to where we want to be, that's still a summer or two away, but it is heartening to see tremendous progress being made using the fine resources and wonderful volunteers we have rediscovered who live among us and are willing to do what is necessary to make us whole again.
