When it's worth the work...ah I mean the walk!

Today we planned to visit the "Casa Loma".  This is Casa Loma.   It is a 100 room castle built in 1910.  I specifically decided on the hotel we are staying in because it was close to this attraction.  Ken and I had chosen to do two things in Toronto (1. See the harbor, lake front and CN Tower and 2. See Casa Loma).  The Hotel advertises that it is a "short walk" to Casa Loma. When we checked in I asked about the location of Casa Loma.  Again we were told it was a short walk.  So this morning we set out on the "short walk".  It ended up being about 2 miles.....all up hill.  In the distance we could begin to see the turret of Casa Loma.  And then we got to the end of the road.  We were not quite prepared for the sight that met our eyes.

It was a VERY long multiple sets of rock stairs up a very steep hill. (It is never good when you encounter multiple sets of people running up and down the stairs as part of an exercise program)  Yes, that's me taking a photo of the plaque with information about Casa Loma.  Ken and I calculated what we think was 5 different flights of 14 stairs plus several short flights of 5 or 6 stairs.  It was tough!  Thankfully there were several spots to sit between flights of stairs and we took advantage of this.  It was obvious that the castle was built on the highest point around Toronto.  You could actually see the entire city from the top of the castle. All the way to Lake Ontario.  So, okay.  We made it to the castle grounds and then had to walk around to the entrance.  Which we discovered was right next to a parking lot that only charged $3 per hour.  Sigh.  We could have driven here in around 2 minutes.  Plus we were carrying extra stuff since it looked like it might rain.  And then there were the 100 rooms to tour.  And a very creepy tunnel that was dark and damp and led to the garage and garden shed.  And we knew that we had the long walk home. 

So, the castle was interesting.  (Gwen saw this castle when she was in Toronto with her high school band.  She was not impressed).  I can see why high schoolers might not care much for this castle.  What really struck me was the STORY of the castle.  Ken and I watched a 15 minute film about the man who built this house. What an amazing story.  This man was a multi millionaire in 1910.   He had brought electricity to Toronto and built the first power plant.  Sadly, he and his wife and son only lived in the partially finished castle for a few years.  He was at one time very wealthy but lost most of his wealth in the 1929 stock market crash.   And then he came up with an idea to generate power from the mighty Niagara Falls.  He and two partners built the power plant.  Now here is where the story takes a unfortunate turn.  The government of Canada took the power plant away from him and his partners and did not give them anything for it!  They were forced to move out of the castle, his wife died and basically he was left penniless.  Fortunately, the state fixed up the castle and decided to give tours to raise funds to maintain the property. 

This got me thinking.  How very blessed are we to live in the United States.  I know that there are lots of negative things about our government, but I am thankful that many, many people have come up with lots of new and inventive things that have NOT been taken away from them with no remuneration.  I was imagining what might have happened had he lived a short distance south when he came up with the power generation idea.  His life might have been very different. 

After finishing our tour, we walked the 2 miles back to the hotel.  Fortunately it was NOT raining and the trip back was mostly down hill!  When we approached the hotel we discovered that the road was blocked off and there was a 1 mile section devoted to a street fair.  Virtually right in front of our hotel.  We dumped off our extra stuff, and walked some more!  The entire length of the street fair.  It was interesting.  There were lots of new age booths (including fortune telling, palm reading, rekki, yoga meditation, etc), there were several Buddhist booths,  quite a few with incense and crystals, and one booth with a lone Rabbi sitting at a table with a sign that said "Ask the Rabbi".  There was not a single church represented.  Boy did I ever become that silent missionary and pray! 

So the day was very worth the work of all the walking.  I am so glad that we decided to do these two very different days here in Toronto.  I think that it is interesting that I have gained a new perspective on the United States.  And I have also been reminded just how important a single praying person can be.  Today is Pentecost.  The day when that first ragtag group of men had their world turned upside down.  Because of that day, they changed the world.  And I am thankful that the same power that affected them, can make me a world changer also!

Jesus, thank you for this day, for your incredible gift of the Holy Spirit, for your love and your care.  Thank you for Ken and this trip that has helped us to remember and celebrate our 40 years together.  Holy Spirit, thank you that you continue to come and touch us and change us with your power and your presence.  What an amazing gift you have given to us!  Amen