Canada invited us to come over. Canadian sons and daughters helped to set us free in Europe; then this country ended up asking us to make up their loss. The terms were generous: a job, a house and subsidized travel.
Economic historians have called ours “this improbable land.” The poet Al Purdy famously called ours the country that hardly knows itself. But we have made it to 150. We have moved from improbable to inevitable.
One cannot understand farming in Canada without recognizing the impact of Dutch Canadian farmers.
At the checkout I noticed a basketful of stylized maple leaf pins, commemorating Canada’s 150th birthday.
“Amazing,” I said to the clerk. “I remember when Canada turned 100. We had a similar maple leaf symbol back then. Suddenly I feel old.”
That’s how prayer works, I thought. Prayer is holding hands.
Resistance is also nothing new. After all, we are called Protestants and this year we remember the 500th anniversary of one of the largest social disruptions in history, the Reformation, in largely positive terms.
In patients with a spinal break, the brain is able to command in an appropriate manner and the muscles are still functional (though they weaken significantly when not used), but the connection between the brain and the muscles – the spine – has been broken.
It has always been my utopian dream that my family would be this tech-free, simplistic, creatively inspired unit. That we would be free from the obsessions of the world. Yet technology creeps in and can easily take control of our lives.
The appearance of biological data also tells farmers and gardeners the right time to plant. In the Midwest people used to say, “When oak leaves are the size of a squirrel’s ear, it’s time to plant corn.” I never could get a squirrel to stay still long enough to measure.
Are Christian organizations great employers? A Christian just hired to work for a church, Christian school or Christian social agency might expect to enter the ideal workplace: what could be better than working for an agency and employer who share your basic faith and deepest convictions?
Here we are, the grateful owners of a very comfortable and pleasant townhouse. It will take several weeks now before we are almost settled in, although the ultimate finish line may be a year away.
What if our churches were also known for their sustained work in loving, noticing and introducing Canadians to each other? That’s the enduring legacy of the Vinyl Café. Maybe it could be ours too?
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