A few days ago, I woke up from a nightmare. In it, I was with my friend and our dogs. We were all enjoying a summer day by the river. Out of nowhere, a tidal wave came upstream and drowned some of the people near us. My friend and I somehow stayed afloat. This scene …
Without a doubt, you are the person who taught me the most this year. Not a day passes where I don’t think, wonder or worry about you. In late January, I was licensed as a foster parent, and you came along about ten days later. With three hours’ notice, I opened the door to you …
About 15 years ago, I stored photos with an online service. Even though I haven’t added new photos in years, the company still emails me with reminders of past moments. One of those emails recently included a group photo from a holiday lunch with people from work, and I immediately forwarded it to a friend …
I still remember the feel of string cutting into my neck. I was so proud of that aching feeling; it meant the little orange box was full of money for what I understood to be a good cause. I understood myself to be making a difference. Years ago, I trick or treated with a UNICEF …
I was driving when I received my first phone call about you. In subsequent conversations, I learned you were living in a group home meant for older boys, and the goal was to find somewhere more suitable for a child. Being at home with your mom was unfortunately not an option; among other things, you’d …
“If you hear anyone say this happened because of performance, that statement is wrong and you should correct it.” Our department’s vice-president said something like this to those of us who remained last week, where “this” referred to a significant round of lay-offs. If you saw my last blog post (inspired by several employers, including mine), you …
I was recently invited to deliver a guest lecture to a group of university students, and one of them asked if I thought capitalism should be dismantled. The short version of my more nuanced response was something like, “it definitely needs some changes.” It’s no secret I have concerns with how our economic system is …
Several weeks ago, I was doing daycare drop-off and saw a young girl getting out of her dad’s car. It was 7:22 am and she was eating two corndogs. I immediately thought, “Good for you, dude. Mornings are hard.” I also thought, “If that’s allowed in parenting, maybe I’m doing okay.” I became foster parent …
I was in Mexico earlier this year with family, and we benefited from the regional knowledge and good humour of David, a local guide. Sure, there was one trip to a colonial city and nearby volcano that had me wishing hard that David would, please, stop talking about salt. (Seriously: that guy knew a lot about salt, and he …
I spent the first few months of 2013 in Tanzania. For months beforehand, I’d been on a search for overseas volunteer opportunities that felt ethical. It was harder than I thought to do good things! I was mostly against being a teacher, since I had no teacher training or qualifications of any kind. I didn’t …
Maybe There's More 