The Ghost of Ontario (Part 1) (10 Grade Draft)

Chapter 5: The Border

        Before even making it to Finlayson Point Provincial Park, Camp Juniper went through a lot. The first thing we faced was the border crossing. You know, the place where you drive through a gate into Canada from the U.S.? Lucky for us, though, the border was very close to our canal house. However, before reaching the border crossing, Uncle Harrison just had to request some music.

From the backseat, he called, "Hey, bro!" to Dad, "Do you think you can tune up some of The Beatles before we reach the crossing?"

"Why certainly, Little Harrison!" Dad announced, and he turned on "Yellow Submarine" by The Beatles.

I groaned and buried my face in my arms. You see, I didn't grow up with The Beatles. Uncle Harrison did. The Beatles is his all-time favorite band. He never goes anywhere without listening to any of their songs. I never really took an interest in The Beatles, most likely because I didn't grow up in Uncle Harrison's time. I'm sorry for all those people out there who love them.

Uncle Harrison danced to the music, and I felt myself blushing. This was outrageous! Absurd! I was so embarrassed. When the song finally ended, I sighed with relief, but then, I remember nervously nodding. Believe it or not, but we, Camp Juniper, had already made it to the border crossing! That's how close we were. We were so close, we could make it to the border in just one song! However, no surprise, we were caught in traffic. For some reason, many people liked to visit Canada, but almost nobody visited the U.S.

        On our side of the border, the U.S. side, going into Canada, it was gridlocked. On the other side, the Canadian side and going into the U.S., was no traffic. No traffic at all. It was the most bizarre thing. While we waited in line, with Uncle Clement behind us, I took off my headphones and set my phone back down on my lap. I couldn't have headphones in at the border crossing. I had to wait until we made it through. I'll be honest, and you can laugh, but border crossings scare me. I always feel like I'm going to look suspicious in front of the guard. I've never been busted before, but it could happen. Oh come on, admit it! Don't border crossings give you butterflies too? I know I'm not the only one.

Anyway, I was overwhelmed by the traffic on the U.S. side. Were this many people seriously this interested in visiting Canada? The traffic was so bad that the officers even opened up another lane. Camp Juniper stayed together. We knew we would eventually make it through the border crossing, hopefully. I swear, I have to say this again. Border crossing to me is the scariest thing about road tripping! You never know what the officers may find. It's almost as scary as going through security in an airport.

While we waited in line, I examined the Canadian flag that whipped gracefully on the other side of the border, but to me, it didn't wave as gracefully as the American flag, no offense. America's just my home. Canada isn't. I wasn't born Canadian. I was born American. Finally, it was our turn, the Excursion's turn. I remember I was shaking like crazy in my bones. I was so nervous.

I kept telling myself, "You're not suspicious, Kylie. Do you look suspicious? No you don't."

        Dad first turned off the Excursion, and then, he faced the guard and waited for the questions. One thing you should know about border crossings, people, if you've never done it before, is that you're asked a series of questions. This is how it goes, and this is how it went. First, Dad and the guard greeted each other. Then, Dad handed him our passports (you want to make sure your passports aren't expired). If the windows of the vehicle you're riding in aren't down, most likely the guard will ask you to lower them so he/she can examine each person in the car and see if they match their passport. He/she will also check to make sure each passenger is wearing a seatbelt and if there is any alcohol or anything illegal in the vehicle. When this happens, you want to try your best to remain calm and not appear suspicious because like me, you may be nervous. The windows in the Excursion were already down, so we didn't have to roll them down. The guard examined each of us, and I tried my best to keep a straight face. I was actually doing pretty well. As the guard studied our passports and each of us, he started with the questions. In a calm voice, he asked Dad questions like:

"Where are you going? How long are you going to be out of the U.S.? Do you have any alcohol in this vehicle?" and so on, so on.

Dad politely answered all his questions. You want to make sure you do.

        Finally, after a couple more minutes of intimidation, the first vehicle driving to Finlayson Point Provincial Park, the Excursion, was let through. And that, my fellow audience, is how you get through a border crossing. All right, we're finished with the lessons. Let's let The Ghost of Ontario commence.

I released my breath that I held through the crossing and sighed with relief. We made it through. We now just had to wait for Uncle Clement. I finally was able to put my headphones back in. Therefore, I did, and I scrolled down my list of songs on my phone and searched for a good one to listen to on the way to Finlayson.

Dad pulled off to the edge of the road so he could wait for Uncle Clement and his Explorer. Five minutes passed. Five minutes felt like forever.

        Aunt Lydia finally just threw up her hands and yelped, "Oh I just knew that boy would get in trouble!" She pressed her palm up against her face.

Aunt Delia turned to her and said, "Patience, Lydia, patience. Give them a moment. It's not easy to get through a border crossing." Aunt Delia speaks the truth. It's not easy. In fact, it's very difficult. We waited for a few more moments. Then finally, finally, Uncle Clement's Explorer appeared, and he parked behind us. I peered out the window to them.

Dad soon yelled, "They made it!" and everybody except Mom and I cheered. Officially we were in Canada now. The U.S. was behind us. This was Canada. This was Ontario.

        Dad made the announcement. "Welcome to Canada, everyone!" he cheered, "Next stop, Finlayson Point Provincial Park!" He pulled back onto the road and headed towards the highway. Uncle Clement made the same move. He stayed behind us. Dad was the line leader, and Uncle Clement, his Explorer, Uncle Bart, and Aunt Jessie were the little children following him.

Soon after we made it through the border crossing, we passed the sign for Ontario. It was to our rights, and it read Welcome to Ontario! So yeah, we were already in Ontario. However, we still had a long, long drive ahead of us. Keep in mind that Canada is huge. Since we had made it through the border crossing, Dad finally was able to turn on some more Beatles music. I didn't listen to it. Instead, I listened to "Life Is A Highway" from Cars. It fits road tripping so well. I always play it whenever we go road tripping. I sometimes even listen to it more than once. That's how much it fits road tripping. Well duh, it is from the movie Cars. I propped up my head again and stared out the window to the farmland of Ontario. There actually was a lot of farmland in the first part we drove through. I kind of liked it. "Life Is A Highway" played from my iPhone, and I listened to it until I grew tired. Now that we're finally in Ontario, The Ghost of Ontario is really starting to come together. Just be patient for a little bit longer, my friends. All your questions will soon be answered. I promise.