When I moved to Ontario Canada from Barbados, I didn’t know about cottage culture. The idea of living in a city and having to drive for more than an hour and a half to arrive at a cottage on a lake was completely foreign. For me the beach was a 5 minute walk away, and I’d never sat in car for more than an hour to get anywhere. So being invited to a cottage was a totally new experience.

What I quickly learned was that part of cottage life was chores. There is always some way to contribute your labour to help out at a cottage. I’ve helped with launching boats, cleaning decks and deck furniture, digging drainage, moving equipment, felling a tree, clearing brush, moving rocks, and doing many other things required to keep and maintain a cottage.

These chores are a welcome expectation after being invited to a cottage… how can I help?

Last night I travelled to a friend’s cottage and this morning we removed the ladders from his dock. There are just two of us and my friend did most of the work, but more friends arrived and tomorrow we will pull out the floating deck for the winter.

Today, after a wonderful walk to a waterfall, we also drove to another friend’s cottage, helped him get his boat out of the water, and stored away all his deck furniture. Then we had a fabulous bbq dinner and spent the night having drinks by the fire with a few more friends who arrived later in the day.

Chores are not payment for the invite. They are not a job you feel obliged to do. They are something you eagerly offer and want to do because you understand that maintaining a cottage is hard work, and doing the work gifts you the feeling of contribution to a wonderful experience… and you get to share these experiences with the cottage owners and fellow guests. The chores are simply part of cottage life.