On a late July warm and breezy summer morning in Ramsay Township there is nothing that surpasses the idle pleasure of a substantial breakfast from Wendy MacDonald Catering at the Mississippi Golf Club in the Village of Appleton adjacent the meandering Mississippi River. Once again today we were propelled from our domestic habitation to the welcome flagstone patio of the club overlooking the first tee and the tranquil waters of the nearby river. The effulgent sunshine partly impeded the clarity of my forward view but it was a qualification I happily endured as I nestled into my lounge chair, sipping strong black coffee awaiting the arrival of homemade blueberry pancakes with maple syrup and butter.

Understandably the immediate focus of most interlopers was the golf course itself, not the kitchen except perhaps for a quick treat or something to stuff into the golf bag for later consumption. For those of us devoted solely to putting on the nose bag, the dining room and patio were welcome ambiances affording a picture–perfect opportunity for conviviality and repast. We were among others this morning who congregated variously under umbrellas and clubhouse roof overhang. As I blinked into the sunshine I was treated to the cheerful delight of spirited conversation and the occasional sound of geese along the water’s edge. And the thwack of a driver on the first tee!

Often times before I have remarked that Mississippi Golf Club is the place where I first met many of the businessmen around whom my subsequent legal career revolved. While the original clubhouse has since been replaced by a new one, the memories of those earliest days of my career and the figures in it linger on. I won’t propose that there is an ecclesiastical element to the venue or the congregations, but the strength and history of events there are to this day paramount in my mind.

The club is a jewel in the crown of Lanark County. Lately I have been enthralled by this and other gems of our immediate environment. Among them are the verdant fields of cornstalks and wheat which, with their parallel avenues sometimes seen from an approaching ridge, constitute the most striking tapestry. Conjoining these vast magnificent views, bucolic roadways, riparian proximity and superb collation renders a near-mystical experience and one which never fails to reward by incremental degrees.