Tara Jeffrey
Jeff and Terry Lindsay had no idea their Cathcart Boulevard home would become such a spectacle when they moved there three years ago.
“We have this huge tree out front — probably one of the biggest along the boulevard — with a big indentation in it,” said Terry Lindsay. “The neighbours told us it had been damaged by a car, years ago.”
That’s when husband Jeff, looking for something to do in retirement, decided to transform the trunk’s gaping hole into a house for fairies.
“So he painted the inside and put a little handle and some decorations on,” Terry Lindsay said.
“And we would sit in our living room and just watch people come up, stop to take pictures, and check it out.”
The couple enjoyed the attention their little fairy house was earning, but last month, the roadside attraction was destroyed when yet another vehicle crashed into the stately maple.
It didn’t take long for neighbours and passersby to start asking — would they build another house for the fairies?
The Lindsays put an “Under Construction” sign on the tree and Jeff got to work, determined not to disappoint.
“He did it much nicer, now,” said Terry Lindsay, adding even more spectators now stop to take a peek. Many turn to the house and give a ‘thumbs up’ of approval.
“It’s pretty entertaining; it’s cool to watch everyone’s reaction,” she said.
One day recently they arrived home to find an envelope nestled in the tree at 513 Cathcart. It was a letter from six-year-old Hailey, who had been visiting Sarnia from Ottawa.
“I love your fairies. I love your tree,” it read.
The Lindsays admit Jeff gets teased by his buddies for the curious creation, but they don’t mind one bit.
“If it puts a smile on peoples’ faces,” Terry said, “So be it.”