February 3, 2003
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La mare
Quelque part en Ontario pendant l ' été 2001 , un homme décida de faire une mare dans sa cour . Et il creusa , creusa encore , creusa toujours à travers les racines et le rocher pour avoir un grand trou . Pleuvait - il ? Il creusait quand même dans la boue .
Quelquefois il s ' arrêtait pour reprendre haleine ( première photo) . Mais il recommençait sans se décourager . Il y avait aussi des tas de terre et de rochers à transporter . Jamais il n ' abandonna . Puis il planta , empoissonna .
The beginning of the digging ©taken by Lynn Burnett 2001
The pond
Somewhere in Ontario during the summer 2001 , a man decided to make a pond in his backyard . So he dug , dug again , always dug through the roots and the rock to have a big hole . Was it raining ? he dug , even in the mud .
Sometimes he stopped to get his breath ( first photo ) . But he began again not becoming discouraged . There were also amounts of ground and rocks to carry . Never he gave up . Then he planted and stocked with fishes .
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Et en 2002 voici le résultat ( 2ème photo ). Magnifique , n ' est - ce pas ? Décision , travail et ténacité sont les maîtres - mots en bien des domaines . ne pensez - vous pas ?
And in 2002 here is the result ( second photo ) . Wonderful , isn't it ? Decision , work and tenacity are the masterwords in many fields ? Dont you think ?
Comments (96)
Je rêve d'un jour avoir un étang, et/ou une fontaine dans notre cour arrière...
-- Lise
Incredible, that is just beautiful!! We have a tiny teeny little pond in our garden, but nothing compared to this!!
Beautiful!!!!
In my job with Fish & Wildlife, I work with a lot of people putting fish in their ponds. What kind of fish?? Koi or trout??
Cool!
What a beautiful pond!
What a beautiful spot. Looks peaceful.
That is just beautiful, Michel. Hard work really pays off.
and {{{hugs}}}
Tres Belle........ Thank you for sharing this beautiful spot with us... hugs to you... Rose
That's really beautiful! His hard work has really paid off.
very nice!
is this in your backyard?
Awesome pond, but digging during the rain is tricky (know a little about digging for swimming pools).
Nice though, very nice.
that's sotrue--we do turn away from the difficult path oftentimes...
En Italien il Mare c'est la mer,je vois que en Français la mare c'est autre chose.
Je me demande qui est le Monsieur de la foto. iI me rapelle la chanson de George Brassens " le pauvre Martin" Avec la bêche a l'epaule creuse la terre, creuse le temp...
Bien à toi
Carlo
Whether clearing rocks out of a yard in order to build a pond, or clearing stumbling blocks out of my life in order to build a better future, the end result is always something worth working for.
The results are beautiful! Oh how I want the weather to fair so I can get out there.
What a beautiful--and inspiring--analogy for life.
mes parents ont fair la même chose dans leur cour... le résultat est magnifique. j'vais prendre des photos au printemps:)
vous écrivez de bonnes blogs. J'aime lire votre site énormément.
Ma mère a fait un étang. Elle aime les plantes d'eau et koi. Une partie de son poisson a reçu énorme et elle les devait donner aux gens avec les plus grands mares.
I would love to have a pond on the backyard... so tranquil
the hard work gave birth to peace and serenity!!
It just shows that hard work pays off , what a lovely pond .
Ps Michel on a Saturday I post a bit later , mid morning time
yes. now if only i had the discipline.
The things that we have to work hard for always give us more pleasure don't they ?
You must be so happy that all your hard work has turned into something so beautiful. The pond looks so peaceful, so tranquil. And I love waterlillies!
quelle belle mare!
What a lovely addition to his yard. To look at such a pond would bring peace and rest. It is well worth the long labor it took to accomplish it.
Carol
What fruitful labor!!! A beauty to behold! For years to come!
o michel, Thank you Thank you ! i am working hard right now to bring 'Décision , travail et ténacité' into new areas of my life. i am already way past the age where i should have learned to do this long ago. but, never too late, yes? this entry is a great encouragement to me. i am going to try and somehow get the picture of the completed pond printed, so i can put it on my wall and keep it for a constant reminder. you are a gem, michel !¡!
why cant I do that>
The fruits of his labor were great. That's a beautiful pond.
Le résultat est vraiment beau. Est-ce qu'il y a des poissons?
MMMM..... those are Lotuses, arent they?
Beautiful, Michel
...very nice! How does he keep the pond from stagnating?
MuSe
I want to put a pond in my living room -- my landlord won't let me. It is a shame; if the rsult was like that of above, it would be a peaceful place to be.
I hope you are well, my friend.
How serene and just beautiful..
rubymoon
It looks like all of that work was well worth it. That is a beautiful pond!
J'ai toujours voulu un étang comme ceci en ma cour. Ceci semble être beaucoup de travail dur. Il a payé. Quel bel étang!
d'accord, c'est très magnifique!!! peut-être il peut l'apprécier en plus parce qu'il a fait beaucoup d'effort. mais.... moi aussi habite en ontario. où est la maison de cet homme? c'est proche de niagara? vous avez dit que vous avez visité là.....
My sister and her husband did the same thing and they have the most beautiful pond and waterfall you have ever seen. And when you sit out there it is so peaceful. I really like that. Take care and I hope you and your family are well.
it's truly amazing!
Lovely pool makes our small one here look very tiny but all we could fit in, we had 10 small fish, now there are 8 larger ones. When we had a larger garden we had a large pool and one winter we couldn't see any fish, so we thought they had all died, so we stopped putting any food in. Come spring there were dozens of magnificent large fish and lots of growing babies, I guess they survived by eating the eggs and some of the young and the plants. When we dismantled it, we had 28 huge gold fish ,and a host of smaller ones which we sold to a fish shop, not an eating one but one that sold goldfish. Funny story, we used to go to Barnacle Bills at Elizabeth a few years ago, and then the owner put in a large fish tank with some large fish in it. Matt would never eat there again, he said he thought the owner was cooking them, so I queued for fish and chips and he went next door for a burger. When I told the owner this, he just would not believe it. Aren't humans funny (peculiar) Cheers Marjie
How beautiful!!! It looks worth all the time and effort!!!
My talents have never been practical! But hard work is the key to this wonderful achievement. I need to learn that lessong one day - but not today! Tom
It is the way of life isn't it? We dig and dig and hope we have something as lasting as this pond at the end of our lives. Lovely as always Michel.
C'est la façon de vivre n'est pas lui ? Nous creusons et creusons et espoir que nous avons quelque chose aussi durable que cet étang à la fin de nos vies. Beau en tant que toujours Michel. Mon ami va comment mon Français ?
Tres magnifique! I love this pond....and one day when my little one is a bit bigger I will hopefully have something like it! I admire his hard work....is that "him" you, my friend?
Wonderful! The fish should have a happy home there. I hope they are not too cold though--it has been very very cold here.
This turned out beautiful..... (My hole in the yard remained a mud puddle) glad to see the dream accomplished.
wow! very beautiful...
ah, c'est très jolie! Nous avons aussi une mare. Il y a des poissons dans la mare de votre ami? (on en a quatre - Levi, Dot, Amidala, et Homer.
)
beautiful!!!
What a beautiful pond! You will spend many peaceful hours beside it, now that it is finished. Congratulations!
It is beautiful! Good work!
Wow Michel! You have done something to be proud of! That is beautiful. Your chest must swell with pride every time you see it.
Take care!
Wow, that is an accomplishment! That man must be very proud of his work! Great photos! Cheers, Neil
that is beautiful.... great work, I love ponds. I am sure the fish must be very happy to be there in that pond.
What a beautiful pond! I amazed about how the image of something like this can appear in someone's head out of seemingly nowhere! Simply the fact that he had the imagination to create the vision of this beautiful pond, let alone the fact that he followed through so that he could share his pond with others, and you could share it with us. Thank you for the beautiful pictures.
Lovely indeed.
wow! I wish I had that kind of perseverance.. I always tend to give up..that is a beautiful pond
!
That is a beautiful pond. Gosh, digging sounds like fun- I haven't done anything strenuous in so long, that I almost long to do some physical work.
Beauty is created through much determination, tenacity and trial and error. Rodin has always been an artist who touched my soul and look what he went through!
Michel, Salut!! Je vous manquais et j'ai decide de visiter xanga
Une tres belle blog!
Pour moi, la decision et travail est facile, mais la tenacite, et patience est difficile. Mais je dois essayer. Merci pour la bonne message!
Precision : 2 or 3 readers think it ' s me on the picture and this pond is mine . I specify again the pond is in Ontario ( Canada ) and the man on the picture is a Canadian friend of mine . And the pictures have been taken by his wife .
i must say that your pond looks very nice... you did a very good job...
Hi Michel, thanks for your kind comments, great story, shows what can be acieved with work and commitment
Wow.. beautiful pond... hard work does pay off
Wow - he did a fantastic job!! Thanks for sharing it with us! When Randy and I buy a house later this year or early 2004, we're talking about putting a pond in too!
Thanks for your comments about the wedding ! It's been a wonderful week for us!! 
How beautiful!
That's awesome! I've always wanted a pond of my own! I'd love to have Koi fish.
tres encourageant!! j'ai de nouveau courage pour faire mes travails!
j'admire comment vous pouvez trouver dans tout des mots de sagesse. c'est un cadeau que je voudrais avoir comme vous.
la chanson que j'ai ecrit avant qui'ly a des semaines s'appelle "Le reve du Pecheur" chantant par Laurent Volzy - un chanteur francais? Le savez-vous?
a bientot!
Breathtaking pond!! I like the way that you always write something that makes me think with your photos.
Hard work and perseverance are so necessary in most things...even relationships!!
Je l'aime! Merci pour partager.
Ohhhhh my goodness Michel! What a hard and difficult job this would have been for you! And what a maginficent result from your efforts!!
. The pond looks absolutely beautiful! 
.
ahhh nice.
Nous avons une mare aussi dans notre cours mais c'est vraiment petite. Votre est tellement jolie!
This is just beautiful! Hard work does pay off.
BEAUTIFUL , THE MRS. AND THE POND. HUGS FANCY
there is apond in my backyard that a previous owner put in....nothing as beautiful as the one you picture here!
s
Somewhere in Edinburgh a woman is reading about a man building a pond. She looks at the pictures, and thinks he has made a wonderful job of it.
That's a great looking pond in the backyard!!
his hard work paid off! it is beautiful
merci pour le lien au site de laurent volzy - c'est tres amusant le site!
que vous avez aime mon blog sur la guerre et ses effets m'a donne du plaisir - j'espere forte que plus peut le lire.
j'entends le reve du pecheur maintenant...ah d'ocean....
First I thought he was digging a swimming pool. hahahah
Isn't it wonderful to be able to look back at life - and see achievements
Lovely pond - and well worth the efforts 
Hope you are well ~warm hugs~ Libby 
j'en voudrais une moi aussi! très magnifique!
vous avez raison -"il faut saisir le soleil quand il est là"
je vous embrasse!
WOW! C'est très impressionnant! Cela j'avais un tel talent! Votre ami est un homme très artistique!
That is a beautiful pond. Have a great day..
(((((Michel))))) That pond is beautiful! So inviting.
Are you ready for the weekend dear? Hope so.. and I'm wishing you and your family a GREAT one!
Michel - it's lovely. Looks so much like a Monet painting! I have a small pond, but I'm planning to enlarge it this Spring and maybe I'll eventually have such a beautiful spot at my home.
fishies AND water lillies!
many restful moments as a reward for such hard work and yes...tenacity..
`
Michel..thank you so..for your kindness and encouragement to me.
*you* are appreciated! `` a most lovely man *you*
Jude
WOW!!! Beautiful!!!! You did an excellent job!!!!! Thank you for sharing.
~E
La mare est jolie. Ton ami a travaille' dur. Je voudrais aller au Canada. Merci bien pour les comentaires. Cette photo est sur la rue de Guerre a Paris, mon dernier jour en France
avec ma derniere baguette.
Wow!!!! Awesome Pond. I wish I had one. thanks for sharing the pics.
DG
oh! what a beautiful result! thanks for sharing!
Salut! bonne fin semaine!
michel. i saw the weblog about your friend in ontario. wow!!! you are so fortunate to have this experience. i'm glad you continue this long-distance friendship.
God bless you!
Ah memories, I dug my own pond that looked very much like the one in the photo...I loved watching my fish.
Holy toast! That's fantastic!!
Your friends hard work really paid off. It is a beautiful pool. He should be proud of the wonderful job that he did. I bet it is really enjoyed by his family and friends.
Love
Edie Rose
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