ABC Wednesday- Letter T

T is for teal, which is either a color or a member of the duck family, unless it is one's last name.

I acquired the name Teal when, as a teenager, I married my husband. We have been together now for twenty-nine years, almost thirty. We have raised seven children on this journey and it has been quite the trip!

My husband's family can be traced to Ridgeway, Ontario where the Teal family grew and multiplied. Ours seems to be a branch now little known as my in laws moved from the area over fifty years ago. My father in law was in the US Air Force and my husband was born in Tokyo; Tachikawa Air Force Base. (It's true.)

There remains in Fort Erie a road by the name of Teal where my husband's grandparents had a farm. On the Garrison, I think, is a mostly neglected and all but abandoned cabin which was once the original "Teal House." It is now a museum on the Ridgeway Battlefield, but I think maybe only Teals and tired truckers ever bother to stop there anymore. It is never open when we stop by.

Here, at this house, we have Teal Lake. Well, we have it today anyway. It appears, uninvited, in the backyard during torrential downpours. Hopefully, it will be gone by tomorrow, but I doubt it. It's still raining.

To see the other participants in the new round of ABC Wednesday, click here!