Hallmark holidays: a rose by any other name

Make grim-happy face at Point-No-Point for Mother's Day.

Yes, yes I know I am a day late, or more for my ahead-of-the-clock readers, but hey! I came in under budget with the use of the photograph from the last beach walk in the Pacific Northwest with Lionheart-of -my-heart. The walk didn't strictly happen on Mother's Day. But as chronologically near as I have been to him for a looong time on this hallmark holiday.

Point-No-Point, besides setting the tone for a proliferation of hyphenated concepts today, is a sand spit beach and lighthouse not too far distant by road from Haleikeokekai aka The Little House on the Rez aka la casita. Oh! the delights of multiculturalism. All these different names for the same place.

Come the last afternoon with Lionheart, we decide on a beach walk. I had planned to go to Foulweather Bluff, a local nature conservancy and wetland. The thought was for a little forest walk, then a lovely crescent moon of sandy beach where one isn't meant to take dogs. As an aside: of late every time I have been to Foul Weather Bluff, there have been illiterate people flagrantly leading their poodles past huge No Dogs signs....Canine Conservancy Police where are you?

Anyway back to the beach walk journey: as we were heading up the road towards Hansville, Point-No-Point came up on a road sign. True to our road tripping always-open-to-serendipity-natures we took the right turning. Point-no-Point was once called Hahdskus by local Indian tribes.

In 1841, however, Charles Wilkes, whilst on the Exploring Expedition took it upon himself to rename Hahdskus, Point-No-Point, because in his view it was not such a promontory at close quarters as it had appeared at a distance. This Wilkes expedition was part of the official United States Navy exploration of the "Southern Seas" which took place from 1838-1842, and brought the intrepid gentlemen pretty far north into the Straits of Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound waters on which I now reside.

Hahdskus aka Point-No-Point is across the Admiralty Inlet from Whidbey island. I am willing to bet good money that earlier names also existed for those geographic features. A squat little low lighthouse now stands at the pointless point. For all my readers from warmer climes: the low gray skies and log littered beaches in these images are pretty typical of these far northern parts. And, yes, I have learned to walk on beaches in coat, scarf, socks and boots, bundled against the chill.In 1855 a treaty relieving the Indian tribes of the area of ownership of most their lands was also signed at this site. Rumour has it that there was some disgruntlement amongst the tribe members about the content of the treaty and the signing. Another of the terms of the treaty required the Indians to give up all their slaves and only to trade with the United States.

Later! I am off to get bargains on all that pastel coloured, marked down, made-in-China Mother's Day merchandise in the stores today. Lucky for China the US hasn't signed a treaty with anyone requiring them to only trade with the US.

Love ya, Lionheart-of-my-Heart! So long and....glad you got the fish.

You know my love goes with you
As your love stays with me,
It's just the way it changes
Like the shoreline and the sea,
But let's not talk of love or chains
And things we can't untie
(thanks, Leonard Cohen)