Finding Bliss: It’s never too late to follow your passions

Caryn Colman left her career in advertising and a life in Toronto’s Forest Hill district to pursue a love of organic food and the environment. The 50-something Colman, with her husband and young daughter, found what she was looking for in a failing wilderness lodge and canoe-outfitting business in northeastern Ontario now known as Smoothwater of Temagami.

Temagami

“It’s a very clean place. You can still feel in touch with nature here. We are blessed with an abundance of wild food. That’s bliss, I think.”

Silence

“One of my favourite activities with all of my guests is the silent sit (where they go off alone for a while in the ancient forest). They have to stop and turn off and just be. When you become still, you become part of the forest. I really appreciate being there in its beauty — what the forest is like without people. The animals start coming out; the birds come closer. You’ll notice an insect that you wouldn’t have. You notice the microcosm in the macrocosm.”

 

Artistry

“Cooking is like painting — your palette holds flavours and colour and texture. The way I work best is with spontaneity — seeing that this looks great today and we’ve got lots of this. What would go with this? Is it savoury or is it sweet?”

Wellness

“I take care of my own wellness. I like to try to heal myself with food and herbs. A lot of the medicinals we buy are in our backyard.”