Just steps away from the crashing waves at Esquimalt Lagoon, Ethan and his mother spruced up their driftwood dream house Friday.
“It’s just been a lot of fun building it,” said Ethan.
It started with a typical family trip to the beach. Ethan, along with his stepdad, grandparents and mother Liz, discovered a piece of arbutus wood that seemed too good to be true.
“We originally found this really neat bendy log,” Liz Stirling told CHEK News.
“And then I came up with the bright idea to build the fort,” said eight-year-old Ethan.
“It’s pretty sturdy, it’s lasted for five days,” said Liz.
But the term “fort” may be an understatement. The luxurious lagoon estate includes a fence, storage and even a garden where they keep their beach treasures. However, that’s only the beginning.
“Ethan had a great idea to start building some games we could play with sticks and rocks,” said Liz.
The Pacific Ocean and Olympic mountain range back-drop setting is an ideal backdrop for strikes and spares in beach bowling. But before any of that, Ethan has homework to do.
“I think it’s equally important to get out and enjoy the weather as it is to do traditional schoolwork. So the first school day back this week, Ethan said ‘mom can we do it in the beach fort?'” said Liz.
“We just have a little table in [the fort] and we just hang out in there and do my school work. It’s just a lot of fun,” said Ethan.
Math first, bowling or a ride on the custom-built teeter-totter, second. It’s a daily balance of pencil to paper, creative engineering and exploring the outdoors.
“It’s a pretty cool time and I think a lot of the lessons Ethan is picking up now is actually as important as the typical ones you get in school,” said Liz.
Trips to their ocean-side getaway have quickly become a daily ritual, providing the two with quality mother ason bonding time.
“It’s actually my favourite thing in a time where the world is upside down and topsy-turvy, it’s really cool to get to kind of re-group and re-ground and spend all this time together,” said Liz.
And as for any future beach fort renovations?
“I think it’s completely fine the way it is, honestly,” said Ethan.
Kevin Charach
