We knew it was coming. Truthfully, we thought it might get slow but we weren’t sure how slow. We thought the holidays would be bustling. Apparently, it’s a rite of passage in a small business community dependent on tourism. That is what the seasoned proprietors of surviving and thriving local small businesses offer up as guidance and encouragement. Don’t panic, just ride it out and enjoy the peace and a cup of hot tea, rather than the cold cup of coffee on the counter, a sign of a busy summer.
Shoulder Season is the season right before and after the holidays, where people are still hibernating in their homes, not yet ready to strap on skis or snowshoes and venture away from the lights of the city. The planet slows down, revelling in shorter days and longer nights. Perhaps we should take our queues from Mother Earth. Life can be so chaotic.
For us it has become the time to take stock of our purchases (inventory in the grown up business world), organize the chaos of our housekeeping room and paper a couple of bathroom walls, to make our suites more welcoming when our guests poke their heads out again, like Wiarton Willy, proclaiming “oh hell … we’ve got six more weeks, we might as well go skiing.”
By that time The Sisters will be rolling our shoulders to get the kinks out. Our doors will be open and the fire place will be on. We will be happy to fill up tummies with warm breakfasts as our guests head out to enjoy our beautiful Grey County, blanketed in white fluffy snow. Come on Willy – 6 weeks more isn’t really that bad!