Mitch, with the newspaper in hand, simply said, “You’ve got to see this!”

I don’t know Blake Handley, but I appreciate his letter to the Editor of the Times Colonist, our local newspaper.

I told you in my last post my delight in discovering “The Poetree” on my walk home one of these cloudy days we’ve been having. Blake Handley had similar words of thanks to whoever created his discovery.

Dallas Road is a walk we take more often in clearer conditions, maybe strolling through Beacon Hill Park on the way and, if it is summer, stopping for an ice cream cone at Beacon Hill Drive-In. Nonetheless, I could go there almost any day and find dogs and their walkers in almost any weather.

From the Ogden Point Breakwater to Clover Point Park, escapees from visiting cruise ships, para-sailors, annual yacht racers, and windsurfers join all ages of Victoria’s residents that stroll, run, play, and get an eye full along the shoreline. Freightliners, fishing boats, and floatplanes traverse the space between Vancouver Island and the Olympic Peninsula that is visible across the way. All kinds of people and, more noticeably, all kinds of dogs make their way up and down Dallas Road’s vistas.

This isn’t a story, though, about the beauty and, yes, the majesty of the scenery, but the surprise of shared community encountered along the trail.

Blake Handley’s letter was in gratitude:

A great big thanks to whoever created and placed this Stick Library in the Dallas Road Dog Park. Already it has gathered a lot of four-footed interest and much appreciation. The treasure chest is located where the sidewalk splits at Dallas Road and Cook Street.

Times Colonist, January 24, 2020  Photo by Blake Handley

Celebrating the pace of unhurried wonder, responding creatively to another’s delight and even whimsy, someone took a moment to bring a bit of joy to even the “least” of those passing by and me and maybe you, too.  Treasure indeed.