When I was growing up, my family would spend a few magical weeks every summer on an island in the 1000 Islands. We’d pack up the station wagon and pile in, Mum, Dad, Grandad, three kids and the dog. We’d drive across the island of Montreal from our home on the South Shore, along highway 20 to the 401 zooming along, parallel to the mighty St. Lawrence River. It would take us about 3 hours to reach Gananoque. [gan-a-noc-kway]
Gananoque is a town along the St. Lawrence River west of Brockville and east of Kingston. The sign on the highway has read “population 5,500” for as long as I can remember. Once you leave the highway, you drive under the town gate that proclaims proudly “Gananoque, Canadian gateway to the 1000 Islands”.
This little town holds a lot of history for my family. My great-great grandfather, Charles E. Britton, was a Gananoque born industrialist and purchased Mudlunta Island in 1875. He was even mayor of the town in 1897. For 150 years now, descendants of Charles and his wife, Marion Holland, have been spending summers on Mudlunta Island.
My grandfather would meet us at the town dock in his bright orange motorboat we called "Tiger”. Feeling slightly ragged and carsick after the long journey, we would load up the boat with our suitcases and supplies, strap on our lifejackets and zoom off on a 10-minute boat ride across the river to Mudlunta. The wind in my face felt so good after 3 hours strapped in the backseat of the station wagon bickering with my siblings.
Once the boat was secured to the dock, I would scramble out and head straight up the path to the cottage under the huge oak trees. The path would be strewn with acorns. They greeted me like old friends, and I marveled at how bountiful they were.
My earliest memories of the island are of collecting acorns in a bucket and sorting them. The green ones in one pile, the brown in another. The acorns with caps on and those without a cap at all. And the double ones! Those were good luck, like finding a four-leaf clover. I would spend hours collecting and sorting. My cousins and I would use acorns as currency in our games and as props on our imaginary spaceship formed by the rocks on the island.
The acorn is the seed of an Oak tree. The Oak tree is one of the largest deciduous trees on the planet. It is sometimes called the Thunder Tree. In ancient times, the Greeks believed the Oak tree was home to the Thunder Gods. Its height and large canopy attract lightning. Did you know that an Oak tree is hit by lightning more frequently than any other tree? Oak trees also can live over a hundred years. Their root system below ground is as large as its branches above. The ancient Celts called it the tree of life and believed that Oak trees housed fairies and provided a pathway to the Other World. No wonder this 7-acre island in the St. Lawrence River is such a magical playground for young children and adults alike. There are two types of oak tree on the island – white oak and red oak, one with rounded leaves, the other, pointy.
The Oak tree was one of the first trees I learned to identify. To get to the west end of the island, you have to make your way along a narrow path through soggy marshland filled with reeds, tall grasses, mud and all sorts of insects. Great-great grandfather Britton stipulated that this west end of the island should always be left wild so that the children have a place to play and explore. The marsh eventually gives way to solid rock and tall trees and a forest floor carpeted with soft moss, a thick layer of pine needles, and...acorns! As a young child I was afraid I would get lost in the west end. My mother would say, “Just look for the big oak tree. That’s where you’ll find the path back to the cottage.” My life depended on being able to recognize that tree, or so it felt as a small child.
The acorn is one of the most nutritious seeds on the forest floor and is a primary source of nourishment for many forest animals. In a typical year, an oak tree can produce about 2,000 acorns in a year. Every 2 to 5 years, during what is called a “mast year” a single oak tree can produce up to 10,000 acorns. An oak tree can produce up to 10 million acorns in its lifetime!
For generations, the Oak trees on Mudlunta and throughout the 1000 Islands have been providing shade and nourishment and endless hours of amusement. Like the Oak trees, our family has grown and expanded to neighbouring islands. Just last summer, I walked hand in hand with my 4-year-old grandson, Charlie, collecting acorns on our island. He is the great-great-great-great grandson of Charles and Marion, the first of the seventh generation to play amongst the acorns and Oak trees of this beloved family gathering place.
For me, the acorn symbolizes potential, growth, nourishment and connection. It is the perfect symbol for my piano studio where I aspire to provide a rich environment for every student who comes through the door. A place where they can discover their full potential, be nourished in a playful and life-giving way, and feel deeply connected to themselves and the world around them through their music.