Mayflower Land

Today in class, while discussing the heavy topic of ‘ecocide’, the term solastalgia came up. This is the term used to describe the feeling of loss or sadness related to environmental change.

After going through examples from my students, I shared my own example - Mayflower Land. 

Image source: www.whatabloom.com

For anyone not from Nova Scotia, the mayflower is our provincial flower. It is a small pinkish-white flower, which tends to be in full bloom during the month of May. For many of us, it was the first signs of spring. It has a light but floral sent, and makes a lovey centrepiece in any small vase.

But as far as Mayflower Land goes... that’s something different!

When I was a kid, I grew up in a few smaller neighbourhoods, where kids would gather after school or on sunny days throughout the summer. I am so lucky and thankful to have had these experiences, and the memories of playing street hockey as the youngest member in goalie, or playing endless games of tag, or acting out Power Rangers scenes in snowbanks are some of the highlights of those early years. Some days I wish I could go back.

There was one particular place, however, that we would always come across. A place we would lovingly refer to as Mayflower Land. A hill covered with these tiny, yet beautiful flowers - they seemed endless. If I close my eyes and really think about it, I can still see it; I can even smell them. And it was magical - almost like a real life Narnia - having to pass through a wooded area in order to reach this hidden gem. I sometimes wish I could return, if for no other reason than to see if it is actually how I remember it.

Unfortunately some years ago this mystical place was transformed into an extension of that subdivision. While I’m happy those families have a safe place to rest their heads, I often wonder if they ever knew what their land once was.

Thinking about Mayflower Land frequently makes me smile. But I still get a pain of sadness whenever I remember that it is no longer there.

-the Orange Canadian