Comment on The Quiet of the Country by Helen Koenig1

It all kinda depended….. I loved living in the country. However 2 happenings occurred that made me re-think some of this. The first was when my daughter was kicked in the face (broke her nose, blacked both eyes – and she was LUCKY that time) and the second occurred when my son was born a rather severe asthmatic – and had a VERY severe asthma attack and subsequent pneumonia when he was only a year old – it was winter and we were snowbound and in the middle of a blizzard. A neighbour went by snowmobile the 7 miles into town to pick up the badly needed medications. Instead of the usual 15 minute drive – it took him well over 2 hours one way – and took the pharmacist who fortunately was pre-alerted by phone – an hour to go by 4 wheel drive the 8 blocks to the pharmacy to fill the prescription. My son almost didn’t make it. Had we lived in town we would stll have had a rough time of it – but still would have gotten the much needed help a LOT sooner!
So I feel there are blessings – and difficulties – with both choices. I personally prefer to live on the outskirts of a town where there is room enough to stretch and it is quiet enough to hear the stillness in the air – yet close enough to a doctor or hospital, the fire department – or the police, for that matter, that we and our loved ones are safer.