They have no more wishes
Do they remember, that girl /
treading water in her cabin /
or the mother who held on /
for a long, last hour, praying /
until the tree itself gave way?
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Surprising companionship in the storm
Based on the true story of author Alexandra Alessandri’s experiences with her family on Sept. 9, 2017, when Hurricane Irma made landfall in Florida, this comforting children’s picture book relates how young Lupita and her family prepare for the storm’s onslaught. (Readers may now come to this book with images of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane…
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Higher ground
We live in a swamp. It’s not a swamp anymore, but it used to be an ancient shallow swamp or lakebed. The settlers of 1921 chose the only open, treeless ground for a homesite. But building wasn’t easy, especially when it came time for drainage. The original house sat on timbers. Later it was raised…
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The Fires (Summer 2023)
Having never lost everything in a fire,I’d like to think I’d see it philosophically,take the distant view: things are replaceable; ortranscendent view: earthly things are transitory. I’d like to think a house is a house,the bedroom (with Deb’s own colour scheme and feng shui,and my son’s painting over the nightstand),simply a comfortable place to sleep….
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When you wonder if your prayers make a difference
For the past few months, fires have ravaged my home province of Alberta. For weeks, all we could smell was smoke. For weeks, we wondered if we would be the next ones to evacuate our homes. And now, the rain is finally falling. Heavy, heavy rain, days of rain, washing away the fire, the smoke,…
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Flood Church responds to cyclone devastation in Malawi
Named the longest running cyclone in the southern hemisphere’s history, Cyclone Freddy made multiple landfalls in Africa over 34 days in February and March. Worst hit in southeastern Africa was the nation of Malawi, where the death toll has risen to over 1000 people. More than 560,000 Malawians are displaced from their homes due to…
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From a miracle in Syria to a revival in Asbury
The ground is sturdy, until it’s not. Until it’s pulled out beneath you like a rug. The aftershocks of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in southeastern Turkey have hit the globe, but most especially those in the city of Gazientap. Over 50,000 deaths in Turkey and Syria have been confirmed so far, while others continue to…
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‘Will it happen again?’
The week of November 14 marked the one-year anniversary of the devastating floods in British Columbia that destroyed hundreds of homes, farms and animals in 2021. Record-breaking rainfall, overflowing rivers and the breaching of dikes caused millions of dollars of damage to 1,100 homes and farms, in addition to an estimated 630,000 animal deaths. Along…
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A river in the sky
“We just left everything behind . . . we might need to accept your offer to stay.” My heart sank for my friends as I read the text. We had been praying and anxiously receiving updates about the water levels rising near their farm, then onto their yard, then into their basement. The entire area…
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Donations pouring in
Monday November 15 started out as a “rain day” – Southern B.C.’s version of a snow day. Reports of roads flooding and mudslides throughout the city of Abbotsford prompted school and road closures across the region. Within hours, staff at Gateway Community Christian Reformed Church (CRC) began hearing about families in their church and broader…
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The high cost of doing nothing
By choosing not to fully help Puerto Rico, the U.S. government is putting lives in jeopardy not only on the island itself, but on the mainland as well – and potentially elsewhere. The President of the United States seems to believe that if a place is poor, or is home to people with brown skin, it is worthless. We are seeing proof right now that – in an integrated global economy – there is no such thing as “over there,” anymore.
