I like walking, and not just the walks on a beach at sunset you might find popular in dating profiles. I enjoy the solitary walks that give me space and time to gather my thoughts and ground my emotions in reality. I also enjoy walks with others, especially with my wife. I have been fortunate…

I was thinking about the pace of change I am now living in. Time definitely seems to be speeding up. In my early school years, June took so long to get behind me before opening the door for 2 months of fun. Wikipedia (often an exciting starting point) says this about the scientific belief about…

I serendipitously came across this phrase that I thought would make a good title. It is the first line of a poem from the very late 1800s. The first two lines are: The wine that only the eyes can drink Pours from the moon in waves at nightfall Somehow, these two lines grabbed my attention….

I took a Viking River Cruise with my wife a few years back. It was our first such adventure on water. I saw many things of historical significance as we travelled from Amsterdam to Budapest and experienced the Second World War up closer than in my history books. One of my strongest memories was during…

I remember as a 17-year-old travelling by train on my own, from Montreal to Ottawa for my birthday on what is now known as Flag Day. I wanted to see the raising of our new Canadian flag. It was a painful political and national process to get us to a final decision. I wanted to…

I recently had a family adventure with our grandchildren. We spent a few hours at the nearby Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village. It celebrates the immigration of many Ukrainians who came to Canada around 1900 for the offer of 160 acres of free land. This outdoor museum covers a large number of acres. All the buildings…

I like to remember this when I’m struggling with an uncertain future. In other words, I find it helpful to zero in on what is real, known and tangible. Those elements have a degree of certainty greater than the abstraction of the future. I’ve been struggling in my mind about our future vacation plans. By…

I struggle when using labels. I need them to make sense of my world, but each label has its baggage. The baggage can weigh me down, reduce my range of vision, and limit my ability to see things in a different light. For example, think of the labelling of some activity as boring. That will…

I want to give you a few examples of this elusive idea of stubborn optimism. Several years ago, I decided to write a play. I had never contemplated doing such a thing until I had a Zoom meeting with the Writer In Residence (WIR) at the local public library. It was on a completely different…

I consciously look for contrasts to help me widen my understanding of my perspectives. Let me give you an example. Child soldiers. My awareness of these youngsters is that they are from far away – usually another continent other than North America. At this distance, I can risk being empathetic, understanding, and caring. I can…