You won't read this on the TV news

A rising star of Quebec journalism quits his job and reflects on his despair at where Canada is headed politically, at home and internationally.

My real major? Student loan repayment!

Finally, an article about student debt in the Globe and Mail.  I cannot tell you how many hopeless conversations I've had when the "how am I ever going to repay my student loan?" remark comes up at parties.  It is one of the most instantly demoralizing topics to discuss with people between the ages of 20-40.

I think student debt is the unifying issue for young Canadians right now.  The current interest rate on my loan is prime plus 2% if I let it float (ie. 4.5%) or prime plus 5% (7.5%) if I lock it in.  For some people with large loans (and I know people who owe 40-50k plus), the daily interest alone is more than gas or groceries.  I know some people who don't even open their student loan statements because it is too demoralizing.  I wouldn't recommend this but it's true. 

With real wages in decline and good jobs harder to find, it's no wonder many young people can't afford to leave their parents' nest.  I can't see how many people afford to buy a house, car or condo without their parents' financial assistance. People wonder why the Canadian birth rate is so low, but who could afford to have kids when they haven't even finished paying for their first degree?

As a result, there are a lot of semi-employed, highly educated young Canadians out there right now.  Which might be good for the "teaching English abroad" companies, but isn't doing much to better Canadian society.  It's a shame more adults don't encourage high schoolers to consider a skilled trade, when a university degree is no longer a guarantee for a good job.

The number one reason I chose not to apply to grad school was the uncertainty of landing a job afterwards.  Five more years, then slug it out to become a university prof and live far away from my family?  Non, merci.

As a result, I moved home and spent three years walking before I got a hand-me-down car when my grandmother passed away.  During those mornings when I would walk in the freezing cold to work, I would tell myself, "you're walking off your student loan, you're walking off your student loan."  I'm not whining, there are many people in the world who deal with much worse on a daily basis. 

But I find it disheartening that a society which claims to value 'education' would place such a tremendous financial burden on young people seeking to get an education.

Berries on the web

Haynes' berry farm is now on the web.  I was there yesterday and there were lots of berries to be had.  $1.75 for U-pick berries and $3.00 for all picked.  Forget those California golf balls dressed up like strawberries and go get some of the real thing.  They freeze well too and are delicious in smoothies all year long.

The pressure's on

The government was going to reduce the amount of wood allowed to be cut from Crown lands.  Then the forest industry (I won't say Irving because they're not the only ones) started lobbying for more wood.

Read about it here.  Apparently the forest hasn't been regenerating as quickly as the computer models predicted. 

Sound Off

The forestry battle is on again - though it's so quiet, you can't hear it if you aren't listening closely.

I noticed in last Friday's edition of the Bugle (our local Irving-owned paper) that there was a press release dressed up as an editorial from a JDI spokesman.  The spokesman was accusing David Coon of the Conservation Council of NB of manipulating the amount of wood that was cut from Crown Land last year.

I don't know enough about the documents to weigh in, but the Irving attack dog was clearly trying to put conservationists on the defensive, with the old line that we need to cut as many trees as possible in order to keep people working.  Omitted from this line of reasoning is that NB employs steadily less and less people working ''in the woods" because of large forest-clearing machines favoured by companies such as JDI.

In the same edition of the paper (which isn't online so I can't link to it!), Jean Arnold of the Falls Brook Centre cited government figures that the Province of New Brunswick actually lost money on Crown Lands last year, by compensating companies for wood they were not allowed to cut.  That's right, our largest collective resource actually cost the taxpayers money.

There is a constant conflict over Crown Land in New Brunswick - about which companies get to cut it, and how much, and for what price.  And most of what really goes on is never fully explained - the story is told in cancelled press conferences, recommendations on 'wood supply' and commissions whose reports may never be implemented.

Here is a story from the Telegraph Journal (which this morning was trying to change the channel on the repeated calls for a shale gas moratorium, and instead encourage the peasants of NB to think about the royalties our government will get) about the debate over forestry in Millinocket, Maine. 

People there are debating about whether to take land formerly used for logging and convert it to a national park.  The thinking from the conservation side is that eco-tourism could potentially be a bigger economic boost than continuing to try your luck in the race-to-the-bottom of the global wood industry.

Signed, sealed, delivered

I have mixed feelings about unions, probably because I hate beauraucracy and unnecessary rules with a passion. However, I think in general that unions are a big step forward for workers, who used to be bullied into taking whatever they could get for wages and forced into working in unsafe conditions.  Lots of people seem to be of the opinion that the Canada Post workers, who are getting legislated back to work soon, are 'lazy' and 'spoiled.'

Like many, I have never enjoyed the (lack of) service that I have received from Canada Post.  They've lost some things I shipped and are generally slower than slow.  The Canada Post Corporation has been trying to take away the mailboxes of rural Canadians (claiming they are unsafe) and my parents had a particularly frustrating time dealing with an unnecessary change to their postal code - at an address they have lived at for more than 25  years.

This being said, I find the whole strike/lock-out and accompanying public debate is really missing the point.  Whether letter carriers for Canada Post get paid x amount or work x amount of hours is a sideshow compared to the fact that Stephen Harper and his majority government are about to eliminate the right to collective bargaining in this case.

I never really understood what was going on until I read this column.  Imagine the government being involved in your wage negotiations with your boss, and then telling you you must accept less than what your boss offered to begin with.  Read the comments too, if you're inclined.  Very interesting stuff.

Fail again and fail better

My sister loves Tavis Smiley - and I love this video.  Tavis is right, that failure is unavoidable, and it makes us who we are today.  I think this is a message young people need to hear, and a message our school system ought to think long and hard about.  I read once that nobody in Silicon Valley takes you seriously until you've had at least three failed businesses - by then you might know what you're doing.

Here is a radio doc my friend Geoff made, about the failed project at 702 Main Street in Woodstock.  Someday I plan to 'fail up' and see the creation of a community art space in Woodstock.  Thanks Tavis! 

Tarring us all with the same brush

I couldn't believe my ears this morning when I found out that the Vancouver Police Chief has described the Stanley Cup rioters as "anarchists and criminals who appeared to be the same people involved in the pre-Olympic demonstrations and noted police saw many equipped with goggles, gasoline and other tools to create damage."

It is incomprehensible to me that the police chief would associate these drunken, testosterone crazed young men with people who had legitimate grounds to protest the Olympics. Protesting a decision to displace poor people and spend billions of dollars on militarizing the city of Vancouver is not the same as trashing a police car because your team lost the final hockey game of the season.

So far, the charges stemming from the Vancouver riot include: 101 arrests, with 85 charged with breach of the peace, eight charged with public intoxication and eight charged with Criminal Code offences including theft, mischief, assault with a weapon and breaking and entering.

I have been to legitimate political protests.  As I wrote here, I think protest has a very legitimate place at the heart of our democracy. 

When police shut down a hockey riot and then attempt to confuse the public by stating that hockey rioters are 'the same no-good types' as G20 protesters and anti-Olympic demonstrators, they are attempting to dis-empower people and manipulate honest, law-abiding people into viewing all protests as events 'like those hocket riots in Vancouver."  What this does is de-legitimize protests, leaving people to conclude that all protesters are 'thugs', and that mass demonstrations are 'dangerous.'

The other reason I find this offensive is that many of the hockey rioters are obviously white and middle-class.  The story of the privileged athlete lighting the police car on fire is one easy example.  But, as one commenter on this newspaper story pointed out, anarchists don't buy $150 trademarked NHL jerseys.

Then when the police chief comments, he doesn't (accurately) point out that the people arrested were mainly middle-class kids who probably don't even know who the current leader of the Liberal Party is.  Instead, he tars them with the 'anarchist' tag, implying that rioters are probably lower-class rabble who don't deserve Charter rights anyway.

Take for example a group of cyclists arrested during the Toronto G-20 protests. As you read this, ask yourself if hockey rioters were treated this way:

About 80 people were detained and some were seen being strip-searched in front of Parkdale Community Legal Services on Queen Street West. About 40 of them had been preparing to board a bus bound for Quebec when the police surrounded them, freelance journalist Rebecca Granofvsky-Larsen told CBC News.


The police even arrested people for having a peaceful pro-cycling demonstration.

Over the weekend, I attended the Richard Olmstead Sustainable Living Tradeshow here in Woodstock.  The keynote speaker was David Coon of the Conservation Council of NB. He spoke about whether it was possible to live 'sustainably' in a world that is ecologically unsustainable.

The crux of his speech was that meaningful change can only be achieved through politics, and that our democracy is in a sorry, sorry state at present.   Looking at the lack of initiative shown by our current local, provincial and national governments, I am inclined to agree with him that we have to get our politics re-assembled into something functional before we can fix our problems. 

The difficulty with this is that some people benefit from a broken system, and I think we need to challenge statements like "people who were part of the Vancouver hockey riot are the same as anarchists and anti-Olympic demonstrators."  In addition to being factually incorrect, statements like these lead to a further erosion of the democratic rights and process that so desperately needs revitalizing.

Coming Soon

A post about the differences between last summer's G-8 protest in Toronto (which resulted in the larges mass arrests in Canadian history), and last week's hockey riot in Vancouver is in the making.

Here's last summer's post if you want to read it.  Feel free to post comments in advance.  Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there.

A word, please

Lately I am getting a bit bored with the internet.  Or rather, with my stale internet habits - always visiting the same websites, too much facebook, not reading enough insightful-type stuff.  I realize the internet is an infinite wealth of information; however, it can also be a giant conflagration of spam, robo-sites, uninvited pornography and other such things.  It's a little tiresome sometimes, when all you really want is to read something interesting.

So, lately, I've begun a slow return to print media.  For those of you under 25, print media includes newspapers, magazines and other physically printed items such as books.  Now, I never left books - that's probably going to the biggest love of my life, but magazines and newspapers are making a serious comeback in my household. 

Right now on the kitchen table we have the Dominion - a cooperative grassroots newspaper that tells the stories the corporate media won't, the Walrus, Canada's most award winning magazine (think New Yorker, but Canadian), and my personal favourite, Maisonneuve.  Check out these publications - they are great.
There's also an issue of Scientific American kicking around here somewhere, but I haven't gotten around to that one yet. 

Mostly, I like that these magazines are written - by a real, thinking person with some devotion to the crafts of interviewing, thinking and writing, and that they are edited - allowing for the removal of sloppy thinking and needless words.  You also get to read about things beyond "Osama Bin Laden is dead" or the latest Harper scare tactics (and subsequent Liberal bumbling).  This I also like.

Finally, I like getting into bed with my magazine, away from the glowing screen that seems to suck as much time as I will give it.  I like putting it down when I've had enough and being able to find my place quickly and easily the next day.  But most of all, I like that the magazine contains stories I didn't go looking for - such as painted portraits of every Canadian killed in Afghanistan, or an article about Canada's newest sketch comedy group, now famous on the internet. 

It's interesting stuff, it's made in my neighbourhood, relatively speaking, and it doesn't require pushing buttons or a screen.  Sign me up.

An honest day's work

When RiVA and the Dooryard Arts Festival first got started, one of the things I was trying to do was create an economic 'node' for the arts in Carleton County. 

Sounds fancy, but basically I was looking for ways for artists/musicians/craftspeople to do their work and get paid for it.  This may seem obvious but if you work in the arts, you know it isn't.  Requests such as "Could you play for free?  It's a fundraiser," or "We're asking artists to donate a piece of their work," are more common than you might realize.

When you have an entire sector of the economy that works but don't get paid, this is a problem.  First of all, it creates inequalities - people whose work is not valued are more likely to a.) become bitter b.) stop doing that work or  b.) move elsewhere.  It also sends the message that the things these people do is a 'hobby' which literally has no value. 

In Carleton County, where we have a small economy to begin with, leaving people out only gives us less leverage with larger economies such as Fredericton, Halifax, Montreal etc..  We need more people contributing - not just so money changes hands but so those people have some measure of economic security.

But even as I have my arts axe to grind, I think that the issue of working and getting paid is becoming more and more of a sticking point for everyone in the workforce.  I know people who have gone from working in IT to working in the trades.  The IT worker gets paid by the hour, regardless of productivity.  The tradesman gets paid by the project, regardless of how many hours it takes to do the job properly - and that time is always underestimated. 

Looking at the Canada Post and Air Canada strikes, it seems that nobody wants to pay anybody a living wage, which is what I'm really trying to get at here:  people are raised into debt but good jobs are disappearing. 

In many cases, young men and women graduate high school, get a student loan, are forced to buy a car (at least in the Maritimes) attempt to buy a house and then all of a sudden, look around for a job that will pay for these things.  And those jobs are disappearing.

Real incomes have been in decline for 30 years and the rich and poor are way farther apart than you think.  Check out this graph from a great Mother Jones magazine article you should read.

This morning I read an article about "zombie consumers" - how people are dangerously financially over-extended, yet government wants to find a way to get us spending again.  I don't see how this is possible - they can't borrow any more money, and it's unlikely they have a job which supports their spending habits.

Ultimately, I guess this is what capitalism means - in order to create profits, some work must be undervalued, and in order for the economy to "grow," some things must remain cheap (ie. oil, foreign labour). 

Will we ever get past this to an economy which values putting people to work, building societies instead of fragmenting them?    In real terms, what would that even look like?  Sometimes I think the biggest challenge in all this is just to see it in our mind's eye.  If we can't imagine it, how will we ever get there?

Planting the seeds

My sister Tracy and I have a lot of projects on the go.  Her cd is in the finally final stages now, with photographs and graphics being gathered, mastering nearly complete and liner notes written.  She hopes to have it in hand by July 1st - this 'baby' is getting a little overdue.

Tracy and I also work together, teaching piano, voice and guitar lessons.  Now we are re-vamping our business as "The Centre for Culture and Creativity" - a place where people of all ages can go to develop their artistic and creative skills.  We will be offering a youth theatre program, Music for Young Childen, and are very excited to welcome three additional instructors - Laurel Green (visual arts), Jens Jeppesen (advanced guitar) and Nickolas Lawson (playwrighting and acting).

Our eventual goal is to have a building dedicated to 'everything arts.'  We see the tremendous talent in the children of Carleton County - they are expressive, and they deserve creative and cultural opportunities. 

These additional programs will mean a few changes for our house - sealing off the studio from the rest of the house, getting a new piano (hurray!!), knocking out the leaky chimney and updating the bathroom.  Between this, the garden and a few gigs, this will keep me busy over the summer months.

It is so exciting to be planting a new generation of seeds.  I can only imagine what kind of harvest we will reap in the years to come.

Sabbatical: Month 3

Lots of people have been asking what I'm up to.  Not the sabbatical  per se, that's too much to get into in a small-talk conversation, but more likely because I am not out in public like I used to be.  I feel like I am being very greedy with my private time, it's true, but I am also a lot more focused on being home. 

The past few summers have been absolutely consumed with organizing.  Looking back on it now, I can't fathom how we did it.  The first Dooryard Festival was a massive and almost impossible undertaking - we spent the days on emails and telephone calls and the evenings trying to avoid our despair.  But luckily, we made it, and now it's well on its way to the best incarnation yet. 

So, this spring - wet though it has been - I have been at home, organizing our music teaching business for spring concerts (June 14 and 15th), digging weeds, planting food, visiting my folks, dreaming, reading, practicing the accordion, accompanying fabulous choirs, and generally thinking about the next phase of life.  It's good. 

It's amazing how quickly life blurs past while plans are always being made.  I felt lost in the busy-ness lately and now that I have taken some time to hear the inner voice again I can see that I feel very compelled to live a simple life, full of real food, family, projects, friends and conversation.  I am really relishing privacy (as much as one can have in a small town) and being on my own schedule during non-work time.

It also feels good to finally give my (our) home its due.  I have lived in this house for seven years now and it needs some love - landscaping, insulation, bathroom and kitchen updates.  Not only for appearance sake but also to make it truly serve our needs and embody our artistic ambitions and philosophy about life.  So as we approach the chimney-removal project and the seeds start to sprout, I am thankful for the tasks at hand.

The Master's voice

" It was not mystery or the divine touch that got them where they were, but labor, discussion, thinking, study, trying, failing, trying again."

Great article on why we never hear from modern composers anymore.  It's hard to imagine members of the general public running out to music stores to buy batons.

Deliciousness abounds

This'll be short and sweet - see the recipe below for how to make a creamy fiddlehead soup.  I am not really enthusiastic about fiddleheads, actually, but I figure I can learn to like almost anything at this point.  Hence the recipe.  Also, fiddleheads are local and in season and I am trying to eat locally more often.

Creamy Fiddlehead Soup
Two large potatoes,peeled and diced                               
A half cup celery,finely diced                                            
One medium onion,chopped                                             
One small clove garlic,minced                  
One cup water
One tsp. salt
Pepper to taste
Two cups fiddleheads, fresh or frozen
1-2 cups cream (heavy or half and half)*
1cup chicken or vegetable stock

Bring potatoes, celery, onion, garlic, water, stock and salt and pepper to a boil. Cover and simmer about 20 min or until vegetables are tender. Add fiddleheads and simmer until tender. Cool slightly. Puree in blender or food processor in batches. Return to pot and stir in enough cream to desired consistency. Heat just until boiling point. Season to taste.

* I used 1/2 cup heavy cream (whipping cream left over from Mother's Day dinner) and 1c water, plus 1/2 cup milk. I also wanted some texture, so after I pureed the soup I added 3/4 cup diced mushrooms.

Tasted like cream of broccoli, but fresher and not as  'mealy' in the mouth.  Yum yum.

This one's for you, Dr. Evil

A tremendous debate is taking place south of the border right now because the USA is approaching its "debt ceiling."  In other words, the US government can't owe more than $14.294 trillion dollars. For a handy reference on what a trillion is, click here.   Currently, the government owes $14.243 trillion dollars.  When did that happen?

Well, it started at the end of Eisenhower, grew during Nixon and the Vietnam Wars, and has been growing like a bad weed ever since.

However, this is where is gets really interesting: because of the old-school series of checks and balances in US democracy, politicians have to vote to raise the debt ceiling.  If they don't, the USA will be in default - the world's largest economy will be unable to pay the bills that are due.  Which means that conceivably, creditors like the Chinese government, the Saudis or the Japanese could come knocking.

So where has Uncle Sam been spending other people's money? Have a look!

Mostly on wars, preparing for wars, and intimidating other countries not to start wars.  Somebody tell Edwin Starr that war is good for something  - escalating a nation's debt beyond its capacity to produce wealth.

The craziest part of all this is that the Republicans are saying the only way they will vote in favour of raising the debt ceiling - remember, this money pays for veterans, what little Medicare they have, and for Social Security - is if Obama agrees to massive spending cuts. 

The crazy part is, nobody is talking about the giant Kevlar elephant in the room.  Nobody is talking about cuts to military spending, or closing bases in foreign countries (they have dozens). They are talking about cutting Medicare.  Without getting too apocalyptic, I can't even imagine what a US default would do to the Canadian economy.  I can't imagine what would happen if the US government runs out of money, especially when that same government has been printing money in an attempt to maintain the dominance of the US dollar abroad and spend its way out of a recession.

Something tells me that if those chickens ever come home to roost, we're going to see the ugly shadow of globalization, all over the world.  Instead of the 'rising tide' the big spenders keep promising us, it's going to be a debt tsunami that wipes away most of the material progress of the post-industrial age.

Makes 100 million dollars seem quaint, doesn't it?

Sabbatical: Month 2

The backstory is here for people not up to date on how the Old Testament can help decrease your stress level. I am now minus two fairly large time committments, with several others tapering off in the months to come.  It's getting interesting.  So, what have I noticed so far?

1. Less crises.  I don't inadvertantly double book myself as much now.  I am getting my short-term memory back a bit.  When something important comes up, I usually have enough flexibility to deal with it.  As a result:

2. More time and patience for people.  Now I'm not in such a hurry all the time, I can take time to chat and listen to a person's reply.  I have time to remember family occasions and I actually stop in and visit my parents/friends/relatives to say hello.  I'm able to cook better food and have lost a small but of weight.

3. Practicing!  I spent a lot of time learning piano accompaniments for the Music Festival so now my fingers are in semi-decent shape again.  And I'm working on some Beethoven and some Schumann.  Plus I've got a good start on my accordion playing - Hey, Good Looking, Red River Valley, and of course, Olive's Ghost.

Don't get me wrong, life isn't suddenly perfect - I also now have more time to obsess over stupid stuff that probably shouldn't matter.  But I do have time to reflect on my life a bit too, which is nice. 

One thought that has me pre-occupied is what the "pre-facebook" me was like.  I think I was happier.  I think I worried less about other people and what they were up to, since it was just idle speculation, and I think I felt that my friends were friends, not "friends."  So I'm trying to cut back on that too, in the hopes of spending time where it counts.

Looking forward to summer and getting to food production underway.  Just a friendly reminder to buy local this summer - our economy needs the support and everything tastes so gosh darn good when it arrives fresh!

Failing to pass, passing to fail.

Not going to blog about the new majority conservative government, except to say that I found the result very disappointing.  I really cannot believe that so many people hit the snooze button and returned a PM to Parliament who was twice voted in contempt. I digress . . . although I am not a stickler for rules, certain principles of respect and decency are incredibly important to me, Parliament being one.

Below is a letter I wrote after witnessing the final concert of the Carleton County Music Festival.  The Premier was there, opera singer Sally Dibblee presented the inaugural Roberta White memorial award (good work, Bragdon!), and the choirs really blew 'em away.  WHS choir currently has 70+ kids and they know a thing or two about the 'big sound' and Jen Muir's Corner Studio Choir was also right on the money.

So then I got to thinking about why our kids aren't allowed to do the Music Festival.  That's right, not allowed.  And then it made me indignant, which resulted in this letter.  I would encourage you to write, call or email the Superintendant and challenge her decision to take music away from kids.  They need the music.  Much more so than the tests.

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor:

Last night the Woodstock High School theatre came alive with the sounds of guitar, trumpet, piano and singers of all ages. One past performer remarked, “it just melts my heart.” Rightly so. Music is the birthright of every human being – our brains are wired for music and our hearts long for it.

What does a student learn in preparing for the Music Festival? They learn the self-discipline of practice, they learn to face the fear of performing in public, they learn to accept constructive criticism, and they learn the technical skills necessary for their particular piece of music.

But most importantly, the student attempts to give an emotionally expressive performance, one that moves us to joy, sorrow, laughter or celebration. What better experience could children have in today's world?

Today, schools in District 14 are occupied with the sounds of students preparing for year-end assessments – standardized tests. Our Superintendent will not allow students in Carleton County to participate in the Music Festival, unless they are in Grade 1 or Grade 3.

Why? The tests are more important to the School District than what the child learns from the process of preparing for and performing in the Music Festival. What a short-sighted position for our educational leaders to take.

There is a mountain of scientific educational research that proves that a quality music education makes kids smarter. Parents should challenge the District's decision not to allow all K-5 students to sing in the festival.

We need to stand up for kids – they love music, and they value the lessons it teaches. Our world needs more music, not less. Our kids deserve an education that teaches the brain, the hands, the voice and the heart to work together.

Amy Anderson

Tracy Anderson

I was bored out of my mind

I just finished listening to a very good podcast of Michael Enright's program "The Sunday Edition."  He was discussing university education and whether students today are forced into university degrees so they can get the credential and move on to professional schools or graduate degrees.

At one point Enright is interviewing an English prof from U of T, and asks if the professor was a good student in high school.  The man replies: "I was a great student in elementary school." In high school he became pre-occupied with illicit substances, girls, and furthermore, he says he was 'bored out of his mind.' 

The prof also stated that he dropped out of high school, later went back to complete a few credits, and went on to university, eventually getting his Ph.D., and was now rated one of the best professors in Canada.  The prof also said that he knew Michael Enright was a high school dropout.  So, then I got thinking - how many people who couldn't stand high school went on to lead very successful lives? Google, google, on the wall, who's the most successful droput of them all?

Here's a good sampling of names, if this list is to be believed:  Shakespeare, Einstein, William Faulkner, John D. Rockefeller, Oscar Peterson, Peter Jennings, Bobby Orr, Sarah Polley, Henry Ford, etc. etc.
 
I think it's a real shame we have an education system that legally mandates that kids be in school until they're 18 years old (you can thank McKenna for that), and that these kids are lumped together into classrooms without any regard for common interests.  Most of the teenagers I know are real obsessive types - whether it's bands, sports teams, staying in touch with their friends, acting, decorating their rooms, cars, whatever.

So why are we making them wait until they're young adults before they have the opportunity to develop their skills and passions?  By then, their brains are not as keen and they have learned to be complacent and 'just get by.'  Is it any wonder we have so many problems with bullying when we have a bunch of kids cooped up together without any positive outlets?

Kids self-identify their interests very early in life.  If we would let them take the lead, they would be learning night and day.

I would go out on a limb and say that I think our present education system probably wastes as much human potential as it develops, because it is so focused on a narrow definition of 'knowledge,' to the utter exclusion of everything else.  What a shame, especially for a place like New Brunswick, where we have so much unrealized potential.

The other thing I would like to point out is that we have loads of educational research that shows people learn best when they are fully engaged (ie. brains + hands working together on real situations).  And yet we have classrooms that immobilize people and beauraucrats positively obsessed with standardized testing.  No wonder our kids are bored out of their minds.  I know I was.

This life, and the next

One of the signs of passing youth is the birth of a sense of fellowship with other human beings as we take our place among them.
- Virginia Woolf

I have a legion of humble music jobs.  They are not glamorous concerts with "production values."  I do not exude technical ease at the piano and yet I am grateful for what it teaches me, and the joy it can bring to others.  It's a far sight better than the passivity induced by television, or even the ad nauseum complaining that we all tend to do in our spare time. 

I play a lot of funerals, church services, the occasional background gig, sometimes larger concerts with bands (as keyboardist or conductor), and a few times each year our church is responsible for the service at the Carleton Manor.  When I first started going there, I was very uncomfortable.

The residents there are obviously in their last days, some limping towards the finish line and others present in body only.  It is very difficult to see other people suffer, especially other people who belong to a generation for which I happen to have a tremendous amount of respect.

Yesterday we went and we were asked to provide a longer service than normal.  There was some debate in meetings about whether this was actually necessary or even appropriate, since many of the congregation are asleep within 20 minutes of the service beginning.  But we did our best to oblige the request, and the choir sang a couple of numbers.  At the end, we sang the Irish Blessing:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind always be at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

and rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

 

To my right was a man all curled up, his wheelchair tilted back so he was cradled in it.  He was obviously a church-goer because, although his words were staggered, he managed to get out parts of the 23rd Psalm.  After we finished our song, he managed to look up briefly and I heard him say ". . . nice! " in a small but clear voice. 

I dare say I have encountered few things in life as humbling as the residents recite the Lord's Prayer together.  Their halting tones are about half the normal speed and due to the miracle of long-term memory, many of them who are normally mute suddenly chime in - remembering parts and omitting others.  But inevitably, they get to the end together, and when they are done I can sense that they have somehow managed to transcend the reality of their suffering for a short minute, and have returned to some snapshot of normalcy they knew long ago.  

As quickly as it comes it is gone again.  But I am thankful for having witnessed it, because it reminds me that "time and chance befalls us all," no matter how rich, beautiful, talented, charming or well-connected we may or may not be.  Although my jobs are humble in many ways they make me rich.