To The Thawing Wind
Come with rain. O loud Southwester!
Bring the singer, bring the nester;
Give the buried flower a dream;
make the settled snowbank steam;
Find the brown beneath the white;
But whate’er you do tonight,
bath my window, make it flow,
Melt it as the ice will go;
Melt the glass and leave the sticks
Like a hermit’s crucifix;
Burst into my narrow stall;
Swing the picture on the wall;
Run the rattling pages o’er;
Scatter poems on the floor;
Turn the poet out of door.– Robert Frost –
Thank you to the Vancouver Canucks for a great season, and the fun of the playoffs. We didn’t get as far as anyone in Vancouver had hoped… but as always, we believe, and we look forward to next year. We are ALL Canucks.
Peninsula Arts Foundation – Any Body For Tea?
The Peninsula Arts Foundation is having a tea… and a spot of Murder !!!
Surrey Youth Theatre Company is putting on “Any Body For Tea” at White Rock’s First United Church on Saturday, April 21st.
(15385 Semiahmoo Avenue, White Rock)
Tickets are $8 for seniors, children & students, and $12 for adults.
Admission includes tea, sweets and a door prize ticket.
Doors open at 1:30… Curtain rises at 2:00.
The play is written by C.B. Gilford, and concerns Detective Dennis O’Finn, investigating a suspicious death.
The Peninsula Arts Foundation is a registered non-profit organization, focused primarily on Arts education for youth within the White Rock and South Surrey communities of the Semiahmoo Peninsula.
Tickets can be purchased at the door.
Hope to see you there !!!
Kony 2012 – Part II – Beyond Famous
Removing The Stigma From Mental Health Issues
I have suffered from depression.
I was one of the lucky ones… I was able to get help, and with support… came out the other side.
Some are not so lucky.
May 27th, 1993 was the first time I lost someone I knew to suicide.
Her name was Cheryl, and she worked with me.
This week, a friend lost his son to those same demons.
A lot of us have fought the battle.
The internal voices are very loud, and the concern of “anyone finding out” is always there.
The stigma.
The thought that “I’m MORE flawed, than everyone else.”
We’re ALL flawed.
By our very nature… we are HUMAN.
But each of us carries the burden that OUR journey is unique, that we are the only ones who have ever trodden the path we are on, that we are having a singularly unique experience, where no one has previously trodden.
Nonsense !!!
Everyone is just afraid to talk about it.
Screw the stigma…
I’ve had depression, and it sucked… and I hope it doesn’t come back… but if it does, I have the support of my family and friends… and together we will get through it.
You are NOT alone…
Here is a song I wrote about eating disorders, which can also be applied to the stigma of Mental Health Issues.
The Invisible Children Tsunami – Eleven Days Later
Eleven days after the world became aware of the StopKony video, I still believe in the Invisible Children cause.
- Having watched the video.
- Having listened to, and investigated the concerns that some raised.
- Having watched the Official video reply.
- Having watched an interview on Piers Morgan Tonight.
- Having listened to/read the words of influential people (Oprah, Anderson Cooper, George Clooney) who have been talking about Joseph Kony and the LRA for years, and gaining no public traction.
- And despite the life of one involved individual suddenly and sadly, very publicly, unraveling…
I support Invisible Children, and their #StopKony #Kony2012 #SurrenderKony movement.
I will continue to help support individuals in Africa to start and grow businesses, through Kiva Microloans.
I will continue (periodically) to electronically lobby law-makers and people of influence, in order to urge them to continue the support of keeping the 100 US Advisers, in Africa, to further assist and help the local Governments in the region to endeavour to catch, and bring Joseph Kony to justice.
This campaign has been the subject of much debate, but I don’t see the downside of trying something new, considering that the Lord’s Resistance Army has been marauding the region, and terrorizing the people of various countries, for far too long.
It is well past a time where tyrants and mass murderers can operate without fear of the global community. Whether in Syria, Kosovo, Darfur or Central Africa… failing to stop genocide is NO LONGER AN OPTION.
I believe if Joseph Kony lived in North America, he would have been found and brought to justice in mere weeks. But, sadly, the voiceless people of Central Africa have lived in fear for too long, and it is time for the atrocities of the LRA (as well as those in Sudan) to be brought to light, and to the attention of the world… Further, the light needs to be kept there and held long enough to serve notice to our politicians that this is not a passing viral concern, gone next week, and must be addressed.
Yes, I am trying to help change the world with a few persistent mouse clicks.
I hope you will join me.
