My Country, My Home, My Canada

On Canada's 147th birthday, I once again celebrate our beautiful nation through some of my favourite images from the past twelve months.   Copyright to all photos is held by the author of this blog; do not copy images without permission.   Sharing the link via facebook or other social media is permitted.

My Country, My Home, My Canada

(c) Jean Ballard, 2014.

There are few places on earth that can match Canada's rich and diverse mix of people and places, of climates and landscapes, of flora and fauna.  And though this is not my 'native' land - for, like many Canadians, I am an immigrant - Canada is certainly my home.  This is where I belong. And this is my tribute to my beloved country on this its 147th birthday.   

My country, my home, my Canada, glorious and free - 

Though you are sometimes referred to as "The Frozen North", we Canadians know the beauty of all your seasons, 

from spring flowers in February 

And the honeysuckle that creeps along the fence in March

The plethora of birds and blooms  in summer

And the early morning mists of fall.

We've seen the reflections of your sun on an ice-covered roof 

And felt the bite of your breath on a cold winter's day.

My country, my home, my Canada, 

We've watched your oceans when the fog rolls in

And gazed at your mountain tops that reach to the sky.

We've taken in the beauty of your lakes and streams

And felt awe within your forests. 

My country, my home, my Canada, 

We know your inhabitants, the people and critters, sentient beings all.  We are a diverse lot, we Canadians, and we share our talents in diverse ways

From the artists

to the farmers

and the fishers and the hunters.

They are all part of my country, my home, my Canada.

With friends and families and community members

as we look to the future,

And reflect on our past

May we aim to be strong when resources are scarce,

To protect our environment,

To nurture that which nurtures us,

To reduce, reuse, recycle where we can,

For Canada is our future, our home, for generations to come. 

The young 

and the old

Life of all kinds, 

 No matter our endeavors, 

or energies or abilities, 

Life is to be enjoyed, 

My country, my home, my Canada, 

here we can sing our own songs, 

And chase our own dreams,

And be proud of our achievements,

And if we sometimes fall on our face

or hide  in the shadows,

Or see destruction where others see progress

And if sometimes our world feels upside down

And we think the grass is greener on the other side

We'll shake ourselves off

Stand tall,

And our world will soon right itself.

If we stick together 

And share with others

Heading in the same direction, 

Sharing the path,

despite our differences

And if some lead that others may follow, 

And grab the brass ring (or even an old wooden stick)

And even if the way is sometimes obscured, 

Together we can reach magical places

Because this is Canada, our country, our home. 

From sunrise to sunset, from ocean to ocean to ocean.

We are Canadians
And you, Canada, are our beloved home.

Happy Canada Day. 

Mama, May I?

By Eddie

Mama, may I....take over the blog, that is?  'Cuz yer readers keep emailing and commenting and it is quite clear you is ignoring them!

[Me:  Eddie, go ahead.  I have been working hard on the Canada Day post which our loyal readers will see on Tuesday.  And my arm is hurting from looking at a zillion photos on the computer.  And Shiloh is still not well.  And the garden has been beckoning.  And....oh yes.... I've been walking certain dogs every single day.  So go ahead, Anxious Eddie, blog away!  Yes, you may!]

Eddie:  Okay!  Well, first off, I don't know why mama is sorting through a zillion photos for a Canada Day post, because I'm quite sure this selfie is the only one we needs:

Me an' mah Canada Day headband!

So instead of spending time on the 'puter, irritating her very sore right arm, she could just post that one picture on Canada Day and spend the rest of the time out hiking wiv me.  Like this hike me an' mah friend Rajah did to Crofton Lake recently:

Rajah and Eddie

There were biologists there......

who told us these are bullfrog tadpoles,
which are an invasive species.
Someone dumped them there and now they is everywhere!
They will hurt the natural flora and fauna.

It's real pretty at the lake!

And shady for the hike up and back down.

Or the one me and mah friend Keaghan did  to Swallowfield:

We met this Italian Spinone!
Spinone?  I thought that was some type of  Italian  wine!
(Jean:  That's Spumante, Eddie, spumante!)

Her name is Ambra.
I think she just drank the wine.

We also met two old friends, Mishka and Bonnie.
This one is Bonnie.
They live next door to one of Lucy's pups, Zuke.
We met them at a park last year.

It's pretty at Swallowfield, too. 

Or the one Keaghan and me did up the Richard's Mountain escarpment:

Keaghan likes to go in the ponds on the hike up.

It is very green and cool in the forest.
These sword ferns is almost as tall as my mama!

And the path is nearly overgrown in places now!

But we found our way.....

Right to the top, where it was pretty hot!

And there were tons of daisies....

And bootiful red grasses.

C'mon, let's go a bit further!

Oh look there's a birdie.

And a real pretty view from the top.

Or she could take me fer a walk up to Tatlo Road West where she went to Tatlo Road Farm wiv her friend Liz when they was preparing this month's column for the Chemainus Valley Courier.  They had lots of fun there with owner Niki who is busy doing organic farming and preparing harvest boxes and selling at farmers' markets and getting ready to open her farmgate stall.   Mama took some photos of her and her produce and her chickens (eggs for sale soon!) and even her dog.  It's only a mile from our house so we could walk there to pick up yummy vegetables - cucumbers is my favourite, and I even know how to pick my own!  Heheheheh!

Ah hopes there's some cucumbers in there somewheres!

It takes lots of digging and weeding and hard work
to do this type of farming.

But Niki has fun doing it!

There's greenhouses too

And chickens!

Niki likes her chickens...

And they like her, too.
Probably 'cuz she gives them lots of good things to eat and
lots of grasses and flowers to roam in.
These sure aren't your average chickens!

And they giver her good stuff too! 

The chickens did need a fence though,
because Maple the Dog was a little too interested in them.

Here's another of Niki in the greenhouse.

So, as you can see, mah mama and me haz been busy even if she ain't been blogging lately.

You'all come back, y'hear?  July 1st - mah mama will have her annual photographic tribute to Canada ready in time as long as her shoulder doesn't seize up again, and after that if she ain't gonna blog, well - us critters will just hasta do it fer her!

Love, Eddie. 

Just touching base

When my mom was alive and was still able to use the phone, she would sometimes start her call to me with "Just thought I'd touch base with you".  In my infrequent emails to my daughter, I often find myself starting with "Just a note to touch base".  So after not blogging for three weeks, but not being motivated to write or post much, I figured I should at least "just touch base" with my readers.

The SPCA garage sale was a huge success - we raised a total of $42,800, all for our local animals.

16,000 square feet of gently used merchandise!

I still have done nothing about fixing the computer I spilled coffee on.  So I still access email by remote, can't do all the stuff with my photos that I'd like to do, and don't have my writing programs on this laptop.

But that's okay, because weekend before last I had a horrific case of bursitis in my shoulder - something I've not had before - and ended up in emergency unable to move my arm one iota.  A cortisone shot, some tylonel 3s and several days later, I can type again, but I'm limiting it to a few minutes a day - pretty much just checking email and facebook. It is, of course, my RIGHT arm, so while it was immobilized I compensated with my left arm and now have a back ache too. And, of course, my garden is still not finished.

I did paint the shed door I built
before my shoulder gave out!  

But that's okay, because I have more pressing matters on my mind - my Sweet Shiloh has been very sick. She has internal bleeding for which the vets have been unable to find the cause despite my emptying my savings account into their office coffers. I've decided not to put Shiloh through any more tests and we are just taking it a day at a time.

Ah hope ah get some sym-pa-thy!  

And therefore tonight I cancelled the vacation I was supposed to take next week - my annual camping trip with my friends on the mainland.  It wouldn't be fair to leave a petsitter with the responsibility of making life-and-death decisions for Shiloh.

So... please excuse me if I continue to not blog for a while.  It's all a little overwhelming.

I make no promises about posting for the rest of this month, but this I will say:   On July 1st, I will publish my annual Canada Day post featuring my best photos of the last 12 months.  Or at least up to a few months ago when I spilled coffee on the ones I hadn't backed up.  But whatever I can salvage, I'm sure the post will celebrate our nation in true Life with the Critters style.

Sunrise from my back yard

Meanwhile, please keep Shiloh in your thoughts.

Jean