UNEDITED
Calla Henrik's family runs the best ATV business in town, and she's ready to take over the family business for the summer while her parents go on a much-needed vacation. She's ready to earn some money before she attends the University of A...
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Calla
I tighten my hoodie strings as I walk out into the early morning air. It's crisp and charged with the foreshadowing of another hot summer day. Now that we're in the middle of July, the weather is really starting to heat up, causing the underbrush and surrounding trees to become the prime source for wildfires. It's around this time that I have to be extra cautious when it comes to making sure all campfires have been extinguished before eleven P.M. and nobody is carelessly flicking cigarette butts around. I know I can't personally go around and control the cigarette butts issue like I can with the campfires being put out, which is exactly why I'm up so early – I need to put up the posters around the camp. Reminders don't usually work but they're the best thing, aside from the provincial fines that people face if they're caught by a conservation officer, for me to do. I can't wait until I'm off to Alberta and attending university to become a conservation officer. Because when I get back to take over the family business and have my degree, people are going to regret ever messing with the environment.
The first location I tend to is the announcement board near the learner's loop. We have three different announcement boards throughout the campground, but the one near the learner's loop is the one that's most viewed. Despite the early hours, riders are going to start showing up soon. I'll attack the one next to the unloading station and my trailer next. When I'm finished with those, I'll go and hang them up on every picnic table and outhouse. Then, I'll hop on the family quad and drive through the gully to repeat the same process all over again at the other campground. Maybe, if Maddox is awake by then, he'll want to tag along.
But when I glance around the parking lot, I realize that his truck is missing. Frowning, I glance over my shoulder to see if he's laundering around his campsite – maybe he moved his truck to load up some dirty laundry instead of hauling it across the parking lot this time. But I'm wrong again; I don't see any smoke dissipating into the sky and I don't catch a whiff of his tempeh bacon when the breeze picks up and ruffles my hair.
Suddenly, I'm beginning to wonder if I should save this job for later and grab my phone from the trailer. If I drive up the road a little, I usually get cell service. I could call him and make sure he's okay. However, just as I'm turning my attention to the papers in my hands, I catch a glimpse of something white in the corner of my eye. And when I focus my gaze on the sliver of white, I notice a piece of paper pinned to the announcement board. Plenty of people do this type of thing to let me know if a trail is too rough or a fallen tree is blocking it, but I've been up for a while now and haven't seen anyone in the parking lot yet. And I know it's not from last night because I gather up the notes every night before I go to bed in order to plan out what I'm going to do the next day. Although people would consider my family laid-back and casual, there are strict rules and traditions that the Henrik family abides by. And collecting the daily notes is one of them.
The announcement board next to my trailer is the only one that's half whiteboard and half corkboard. The corkboard is part of the reason why I noticed the note – the white paper stands out against the brown aesthetics. So, when I'm standing in front of it, I shift the papers to one arm and grab the note.
