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Over the years, I’ve had items stolen from my yard and shed. Lawn mower. Power-washer.

Two wrought iron planters. Spare propane tank. Solar lights.



A burglar with a green thumb once yanked a tiny evergreen out of the dirt. If there was ever a partridge in my pear tree, it would now be a victim of bird trafficking. Theft is a personal violation — unless the perps are a secret society of good Samaritans.

I direct your attention to an oddly heartwarming CBC story this week: “He thought his garden gnomes were stolen. They were returned in better shape than ever.” The “he” is Kelly Blair, who lives in Kelowna.

According to the story, his motley gnome posse was abducted about a month ago. Then last week, there was a knock on the door. A “lovely older lady” handed Mr.

Blair an envelope. Inside, there was a paper cut-out of a gnome and the name of a mysterious group that is presumably skulking B.C.

yards: the Gnome Restoration Society. Lovely Older Lady asked Blair to follow her to a car. She popped the trunk.

And there, in refurbished glory, his gnomes grinned. They left his property hideous and weather-beaten. They returned in brand new hues of red, blue, yellow and white.

This was “Extreme Makeover: Gnomes Edition As Blair recalled to the public broadcaster: “All of a sudden there’s this huge splash of colour and there’s all my gnomes back. In fact, there were two more than were taken.” Recap: members of the Gnome Restoration Society spotted a collection .

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