[Editor’s Note: This is a copy of our regular community newsletter. If you’d like to sign up, fill out our communications form.]

Can you believe it’s July already? I turn around to store the snow shovel away and suddenly it’s Canada’s b-day? How’d that happen? 😉

If you’ve been following Compass lately, you know our community is already a hive of activity. Although we’re not technically living together yet, our members aren’t waiting to build friendships. They go to the movies together. There’s a walking club. Picnics and potlucks and pool parties (oh my!).

Last month, we had a living legend in cohousing — Chuck Durrett — around for a visit. Almost 100 people packed into Willoughby Hall.

And, of course, we continue to get ever closer to the start of building. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – I’m happy as heck not to have to deal with the infinite number of small details that come with a project like this.

But in this “summer edition” of our humble newsletter, I wanted to briefly share a story with you… something that happened just a few days ago on the Compass property.

There’s an old house in one corner that will remain there until we break ground. At the moment, two of our members are living in that house as caretakers.

One of them – Diane – tells the story.

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There was a knock on the door. I opened it and in front were a few kids from the neighbourhood.

“We lost our baseball in your field. Can we go look for it?”

I was happy to let them.

About 45 minutes later, another knock.

The boy said, “Do you know there’s a skull in your woods?”

“Sorry, what?” I replied.

“There’s a skull. Can you come and look?”

So I went out and had a look. Thankfully nothing too serious. It was a deer skull that must have been there for years.

I thanked the boys for bringing it to my attention, got a bag and wrapped the skull up as a small token of their adventure on future Compass land.

They were so excited as they bounded away to their next adventure.

It’s a story that could have happened anywhere. Kids love to explore. There’s an innocence and a sense of being in the moment to them. A sense of discovery. And that’s something special that we often lose as adults.

But it made my day… and I’m glad I could do something to help make theirs too.

That’s something I look forward to seeing in the kids of Compass as well.

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Thanks to Diane for sharing this. It’s a great summer story and one I think many of us can relate to – through our own memories and/or those of our own kids.

And that’s where I’ll leave it for now.

Other than to say (as I always do)… If you’d like to learn more about Compass, we have both in-person and Zoom sessions going on through the warmer months. Our next one is July 20th – you can find all the information here. Feel free to get in touch with Doug (doug@compasscohousing.com) or Michelle (michelle@compasscohousing.com) to learn more. Or just reply to this message and we’ll get you to the right place.

In the meantime, I’m off to go have an adventure with my own little ones.