Some folks drive through the prairies on the Trans-Canada Highway and say there is nothing to see. I, on the other hand, have driven for hours and days through the forests and rocks of northern Ontario, or Michigan Wisconsin and Minnesota, and found it depressing. Then the trees disappear behind me, the vista of open … Continue reading Why I am a flatlander
Saskatchewan
Illusions
Tweetie-tweet-tweet-tweet — thunk! Tweetie-tweet-tweet-tweet — thunk! The sound was coming from just outside our bedroom window. I roused myself groggily and peered through the blind. Here was a yellow warbler on the window ledge outside. He would sing his song, then fly up toward the top corner of the window — and bump into the … Continue reading Illusions
Memories of Clarence
I hadn’t seen Clarence for several years, but I recognized his voice as soon as I stepped into the room. I could tell from the cadence of his sonorous voice that Clarence was in full storytelling mode. Clarence was a fixture at our family gatherings. He was my Aunt Lottie’s son, thus my cousin, though … Continue reading Memories of Clarence
Lament for the incandescent light bulb
I’m having second thoughts about “environmentally friendly” light bulbs that produce little heat. I live in Saskatchewan and that heat was not a wasteful byproduct. On Christmas day this year the sun rose at 9:15 AM, set at 5:00 PM and the high for the day was -26° Celsius. We are saving energy on our … Continue reading Lament for the incandescent light bulb
Memories of Christmases past
December 24, 1955. At 11:15 PM my parents and I got into our old GMC half ton and drove into town and through it to the little white Anglican church on the north side. I was driving, even though I was only thirteen, almost fourteen. An RCMP constable attended this church, too, but he carefully … Continue reading Memories of Christmases past
Still missing Penny
Penny was the only dog I ever really loved. He was the family dog of my childhood, an old-fashioned shaggy farm collie, not a narrow-headed, pointy-nosed mutant like today’s purebreds. He was black in colour, with a white collar and chest, and a white stripe down his face, very mild-mannered in disposition, not at all … Continue reading Still missing Penny
Business and Church
I grew up on the edge of a small Saskatchewan town. There were four grocery stores and three churches. One store was owned by a cousin quite a few years older than myself, another by an old friend of my family, another was owned by a Catholic family and the fourth was the local Co-op. … Continue reading Business and Church
Illiteracy in Elementary and Secondary Schools
[The decline in the public education system did not begin yesterday. These paragraphs are excerpted from a book published almost 60 years ago. The difference today is that most people accept this as normal - they don't remember a time when things were different.] Is it possible that this timidity, this excessive appeal to "interest", … Continue reading Illiteracy in Elementary and Secondary Schools
Father Goose
I was working outside this afternoon, putting our water hoses away for the season and listening to the chatter of Canada geese from a pond about a half mile away. I couldn’t see the pond from ground level, there is a railway line between here and there that is built up high enough to block … Continue reading Father Goose
Are we accumulating friends or enemies?
I once read this statement and it has stuck in my mind: "Friends may come and friends may go, but enemies accumulate." It was probably said by some famous person or by a character in a famous book, but that part didn't stick. I think there are two reasons why it stuck in my mind. … Continue reading Are we accumulating friends or enemies?
Flatlander Faith 