KENSINGTON, P.E.I. — As they sat the portable generator box in front of him, Alvin Bernard eyed it with wry suspicion.
You see, for all his 90 years Bernard has been a bit, shall we say, mischievous.
Or, as he puts it, “I like carrying on.”
The thing is, when people know you’re a practical jokester, it tends to make you target for the same.
Which is why Yuko Udea flew all the way from Japan to P.E.I. – just to climb into the box.
As Bernard cautiously opened the package, clearly aware that something was up, Udea suddenly popped up and out.
Sitting back in his chair and clapping his hands in surprise, Bernard managed a delighted “how are you?,” before pulling his guest into a big hug.
Dec. 13 was Bernard’s 90th birthday and his family and friends gathered at his Kensington home to celebrate.
Udea has known the Bernards for almost 20 years. She boarded with them in the early 2000s while working at the Anne of Green Gables Museum at Park Corner, where Alvin’s wife, Irene, also worked.
They became friends and the Bernards adopted Udea as part of the family. She’s kept in touch with them and returns to P.E.I. periodically to visit, though it has been several years since her last time on the Island.
With Bernard’s 90th birthday approaching, Udea conspired with a few members of the family to craft her surprise entrance.
“I like him!,” exclaimed Udea.
“He was always teasing me, so I wanted to surprise him.”
Bernard said he was definitely not expecting his friend to pop out of the box.
“I had no idea what it was. I thought perhaps it was as dog or a baby calf. It was a surprise I’m telling you,” he laughed.
“She played a good one. You never know.”
"We want to thank everyone for planning it.” “It was lovely,” added Irene.
Eleanor Evans, Bernard’s daughter, and family friend Pam Campbell helped Udea pull off her surprise.
“I had to be very careful because my brother flew in on Sunday to surprise him. So, I had two secrets to look after,” said Evans.
The whole family, joined by friends from near and far, had lots of cake and ice cream throughout the day. There’s no word on whether there were any other surprises before the party was over.