Wind Tails
by Anne Degrace
At a side-of-the-highway diner on a mountain pass, during one extraordinary, windy day in 1977, the paths of an odd assortment of travellers cross. The stories of each circle around points of departure: what sets one on oneís journey. These seemingly unconnectedóbut oddly interconnectedóstories involve strange twists, turns and the kinds of chance encounters that change the way we see the world. There is the old woman who, talk she has just weeks to live, tells everyone exactly what she thinks of themóand then doesnít die; the water witcher who comes to terms with his gift instead of drowning in it; the woman who never leaves her own town but travels vicariously through the tales of the hitchhikers she picks up; a trucker with a kind heart; and the proprietor, Cass, and the story that haunts her. Central to this remarkable day in Pink, travelling in whatever direction the wind takes him, and Jo, a young waitress whose own life twistsófamily betrayal, and the birth and adoption of a babyóhave left her anchorless. For Jo, Cassís Roadside CafÈ is a waystation, holding her until a series of interactions with strangers give her permission to find her own point of departure, and embark upon her own journey.