Congratulations to the folk who have opened the doors to the hotel in Piapot. I don't know who they are, but I heartly cherish the energy, imagination, and good-will they show to help preserve part of Canada's exciting past. Imagine, a singular native leader gathering a small native band to stall progress of a cross-Canada railway passage running through his hunting grounds! The very grounds should be preserved as a memorial to Chief Piapot's bold spirit. Who today would park his family laden automobile at risk in front of engineers blasting roadway to the 2010 winter games in Vancouver?

Good on you, Piapot hotelers, for the ground you stand on is worth preserving, and the town you live in is part of the Canadian story worth telling again and again.

If I'm not mistaken, more than one pensioner will find his way back to his roots again, and share in that legacy that Piapot represents. Might be a good idea to put up some real estate highways on the trans-Canada just a few miles off. You just might be surprised!

Ivan Jesperson, born in Piapot in 1932. My father was the village blacksmith, but left with his family for B.C. in 1937.