Articles
An Island’s Real Value
(This editorial first appeared in the May 30, 2006, edition of the Haliburton County Echo.)
Real estate developers can give you the monetary value of a piece of land but what about those other, less tangible values? What are they worth and how much as a society are we willing to protect them?
There’s the sense of peace and well-being you feel when you look across a lake and see a lush forest. The way a walk through a quiet forest can restore your sense of equilibrium, get you back on track after the stresses of a work week. The gratitude you feel that there are still places in our world that haven’t been built upon, the space harvested, if you will, to feed our need for a place to call home.
Many of us can recognize the value of land but we don’t really do much to preserve it. We’re not willing, or able, to put our money where our hearts are. If we buy an undeveloped chunk of the Highlands we want to enjoy it by building on it. We don’t want to just sit in the middle of the forest and be content with the view. Thank goodness for people such as Norah and Bruce Carruthers. In the 1970s they were visiting friends on Kennisis Lake when they found out that a large island across from the cottage was for sale. They bought it, planning to perhaps build on it one day but content to leave it be until they made up their minds. In the meantime, Norah inherited her family cottage on Georgian Bay and it was at this lakeside retreat that the Carruthers family would gather. Apart from their visits to their friendsÂ’ at Kennisis Lake, they seldom saw their island.
But Norah didnÂ’t want to sell it. To her, its value was its natural beauty. She enjoyed just being able to look out the window of their friends’ cottage and seeing it. When she wasn’t there, it gave her joy just knowing that it was as it had always been for time, undisturbed and untouched by human hands. To her, the island wasnÂ’t something anyone could own, really; it was a gift to humankind, one that gave her so much pleasure that she wanted to share it with every visitor to Kennisis Lake. For everyone to feel a part of that island, no one person could call it their own. If the island was sold, how could she be sure that the new owner felt the same way? Norah Carruthers passed away knowing that the island was much the way as she had found it 30 years earlier.
Her husband, Bruce, knew how much the island meant to his wife. He also knew that he had enough possessions and material wealth to meet all of his needs. More money from the sale of the island wouldnÂ’t make him happier. But knowing that his wife’s love of that island would live on long after they were both dead would. After consulting with their three children, and getting their blessing, he started the process of donating the island to the Haliburton Land Trust. All he asks is that the island be named Norah’s Island.
We all know that our genes will be passed on to children and grandchildren. Through them there will be a trace of us in this world forever. But what about memories of us? How long can those be kept alive? Do you have any memories of your great-grandparents? Do you feel their presence today? By naming the island in NorahÂ’s honour, she will be a part of a much larger continuum: the passing of the seasons, the constant regeneration of the forest, the life cycles of the birds and animals that call it home. These cycles will go on without her; they will go on because of her. How can you put a dollar figure on the value of that?
Real estate developers can give you a monetary value for a piece of land but what about those other, less tangible values.
Last Updated: Jun 29 2010 12:10:31 am.
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Did You Know...
As of August 2009, 7 new species that have been identified in Haliburton County have been added to the Ontario government's Species at Risk list. Chimney Swift and Whip-poor-will are now listed as Threatened. Snapping Turtle, Common Nighthawk, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Canada Warbler and Bald Eagle are listed as Special Concern. Read the full article.
