Thoughts from Chickadee Lane

Tis the season of egg nog, chocolate and concerts!   in the past two weeks, I was happy to attend five unique Christmas concerts - with plans to attend two more concerts this weekend. And if I had the stamina there are many more opportunities this time of year to enjoy wonderful live music. While I sit in the audience, I am filled with gratitude for the multiple musicians who graciously share their time and talent to create something beautiful to lift the spirits of all. Thank you and kudos to the music directors who with great skill and generous grace lead a group of strangers to become one voice. Thank you and kudos to the singers and musicians who sing and play for pure joy. Thank you and kudos to all who rush away from their supper table, who leave home on winter nights, drive to a practice site and give their all to be part of something bigger than themselves. As I live with one of those singers, I know first hand that the beauty they create does not happen in a vacuum. It takes p

Long Reach United Church, Dec 6, 2023 December 6 is etched in the minds of many of us. Especially Canadians. It is the day when in 1989 at École Polytechnique, 14 women were killed because they were women. Another 13 women were injured. All by a man motivated by hatred of feminists.   On that day, I was working at the toxicology lab of the Atlantic Veterinary College. Actually it was not until the evening news that I realized the horror of the murders. I recall vividly the conversations at work on Dec 7. A primarily female staff, our hearts wept at the realization that these women were murdered because they were women interested in engineering. We were a group of women who also loved science and technology. This horrific act of systemic misogyny was very personal on many levels. Fast forward 34 years to Wednesday’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women when people gathered across the country to never forget that day and acknowledge that gender based violence