Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Once upon a time, just shy of 50 years ago, there was a ragamuffin little girl who spent every summer day at the neighbourhood swimming pool in Montreal. She took swimming lessons in the morning, then was promptly dispatched by two lifeguards — her older siblings, Caryn and David — to fetch their lunches. After that, she spent the afternoon frolicking in the water with her friends, heading home sunburnt, reeking of chlorine, and completely happy.
That little girl was me.
We were all deeply invested in the Windermere Aquatic Club, a neighbourhood jewel built in the late 1960s. My dad was the first President. The pool wasn’t just a place — it was a community. Losing it when we moved to Toronto was one of the hardest parts of leaving.
And then… the fish.
At a Family Fun Day, someone decided to fill the baby pool with goldfish and let all the small kids loose with plastic bags. Whatever you caught, you kept. Peak 1970s chaos. My goldfish lived the typical “peanut‑butter‑jar lifespan,” meaning a few days. My friend Susan’s fish? They lived for years. One of them survived well past her first year of university.
Presenting: The Windermere Bracelet.
A tribute to childhood, community, and chlorine. Also to the kind of memories that stay with you forever.
Blue stripe agate, stainless steel
Once upon a time, just shy of 50 years ago, there was a ragamuffin little girl who spent every summer day at the neighbourhood swimming pool in Montreal. She took swimming lessons in the morning, then was promptly dispatched by two lifeguards — her older siblings, Caryn and David — to fetch their lunches. After that, she spent the afternoon frolicking in the water with her friends, heading home sunburnt, reeking of chlorine, and completely happy.
That little girl was me.
We were all deeply invested in the Windermere Aquatic Club, a neighbourhood jewel built in the late 1960s. My dad was the first President. The pool wasn’t just a place — it was a community. Losing it when we moved to Toronto was one of the hardest parts of leaving.
And then… the fish.
At a Family Fun Day, someone decided to fill the baby pool with goldfish and let all the small kids loose with plastic bags. Whatever you caught, you kept. Peak 1970s chaos. My goldfish lived the typical “peanut‑butter‑jar lifespan,” meaning a few days. My friend Susan’s fish? They lived for years. One of them survived well past her first year of university.
Presenting: The Windermere Bracelet.
A tribute to childhood, community, and chlorine. Also to the kind of memories that stay with you forever.
Blue stripe agate, stainless steel