adventure

Multicultural You
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Multicultural You

Hail Bravehearts

A brave new day, a brilliant country, a national holiday, a celebration of pride, joy and togetherness.  This great nation, molded and blended, nurtured and cherished.  A great Canada, a fabulous notion, a clever and brilliant place.  Multicultural you, with freedoms and rights.  The freedom to live without violence, to live in neighbourly contact with people of different nationalities, the right to live without arms and to protect yourselves, keeping your community safe and secure..

The laws protect our culture but still frees us from oppression.  No tyrants or dictators, to enslave us.  The contract with the people is peace among us, no cultural quarrels or religious disputes.  An age old negotiation that protected these rights, have been handed down and protected, for hundreds of years.  Multicultural Canada, with its birth in French and English culture, both completely different, yet somehow it works.  Hammer out the contract, write the laws, guarantee the freedom.  The evolving wisdom of ages past, becomes the fulfilling society of our present.  Strong and united, the worlds peoples share this land.  From ancient aboriginal ways to the escaping refugee, the weave of a mosaic of multicultural heritage enhances our lives, gives us richness in people and culture and ingrains an intelligence of peace among us.  United in freedom, mutual caring, the sharing of this country is our shining past, our fabulous present and our brilliant future.

We are unique in our history.  A land of harsh and somewhat unconquerable climate, of difficult terrain and a short growing season.  A majestic land of wild forests and tumbling rivers, of curious peoples and language barrier.  Still, the nation was won through negotiation and peace, love and marriage, barter and exchange.  The cultures blend, learn and accept, we are all different, we are all one.  Our wise past is still our present, still our future, still our bright and shining star.  That star that guides us and beckons us to follow, into your unique and inspiring country.  Into your fellowship and merciful negotiation, into the nation of democratic law and democratic peace.

Hail, oh Canada, as the years roll by and the world changes, the battles die and the wars subside, into your dreams of international peace, where all peoples live under the shelter of laws of freedom.  Peaceful freedom, oh multicultural you.  Write your songs, sing your hearts out, brilliant praises to our national cause.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

July 8, 2016

Early Spring
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Early Spring

Hail, you brave almighty ones.

Praises, you awesome ones, praises to this great good Earth.  The warm spring days welcome us.  Come out of your houses and feel the warmth of those special sun shining rays.   The spring, with it’s special power, it’s newness, it’s creation, it’s splendor.  It is beauty that we crave and beauty surrounds us .  The joy of living, of life on the planet, of the simplicity of warm breezes, cool lakes, shelter from trees, magnificent flowers.  The joy in their hearts as the nesting birds sing, the fondness of animals as they gaze at their offspring, the brilliance of flowers as they burst from their buds.  The magic of the planet casts it’s wondrous spell and spring has captured us once more.

Glorious days of sun filled splendor, rays of shining gold sent to us from heaven.  The lights is with us for hours  now, the dark of winter is cast aside and the joy of spring fills the air.  Fragrant gardens, song filled skies, colorful meadows and deep secrets hiding in the forest.  It is the season of growth and birth.  A season of wonder and delight.  The Earth spreads the word to us, welcoming us into it’s great wonder.  It is the beauty of this great planet, that brings us so much joy. Joy and discovery.

Those same old trails change each day, a new bud, a  new animal track, viewpoints, water rushing, an early spring with so much to see.  The water entices us and we’re swimming in April.  So much goodness, so much sport and  so much fun.  It extends our lives by weeks this year, everything is early.

An escape from the bustling city to the quiet of the spring filled country, a dazzling day on a mountain bike, exertion and strenuous activity to liven the muscles and tone the body.  This great country’s past time of escaping to the beaches, the trails, the forest, the mountains, the campgrounds, the parks and the great wild.  Escape to the wonder of the natural world, the world filled with surprises and unexpected pleasures.  A roadside pull off with big horn sheep playing close by, a view of an eagle with egrets on its nest, that great  horned owl peering at us as we walk along the trail. The views of spring time meadows, of glaciers and mountain tops, of long endless grasslands and still pristine lakes.  We protect all of this.  This is ours to keep.  Our cherished escape to the great beyond, the fabulous parks , the wilderness and the joy of being.  That wholesome success of a day of play, of the unpolluted water and the clean, pure air.  Those days that take your worries away and fill your lives with that sense of wonder.   More, we want more. More of this life of athletic fun, of hikes and photos, of swimming and riding.  More of those rugged climbs to test our endurance and strength.  We want more.  More of this vast land with it’s unique species and more of the beauty of our scenic wonder.  More of the wonder of the natural world and more of the healing of this great divine. This is our awesomeness, these special, protected places, these is our secrets, that we quietly share.

We are old here, but we are still young.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

June 11, 2016

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Some Luxury

 

Hail Bravehearts

Hail and hearty the adventure awaits the bold and daring and the ambitious ones.  Skills to survive, to conquer it all, to bring peace and prosperity to a fragile new colony.

The great wild awaits, with it’s luring call.  Venture forth, oh great human.  Come into this great wild land and reap the rewards of this new world.  Come, entices the forest, come to this viewpoint and see my wondrous beauty.  Come, calls the wind and I will show you how to live.  Come to the new colony, to this brave new world.

The sun shines in glory and golden rays sparkle through the trees.  It is springtime and the air is filled with the cheerful song of nesting birds, thriving insects and birthing animals.  Fragrant flowers fill the forests and meadows and the spectacular colour of their beautiful petals brings smiles.  Hope.  It is upon us again.  Hope for success this time.  It is spring.  Hard work and toil should pay off with success this time.

The sap is running, it’s maple sugar time.  The sap of the maple sugar tree can be boiled into a delicious product of sweet tasting syrup.  Syrup, candy, cookies, butter.   A new tradition, a new culinary delight, a new culture in cuisine.  Come, calls the wild land, fill your buckets with this sweet tasting goo.  The sap of the tree is honey or sugar to the new settlers.  Joy  from the wild, since this is a delight that is easy to harvest and delicious to eat.  Maple syrup eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits.  A whole new cuisine based on the sweet delight of the maple sugar tree.  Now the joy of cooking is ours, in the great new land.   A treasure, a gold mine, a product of tasteful delight that gives the new settlers an item for trade.  Food, prosperity, luxury.  Oh brave new world, there is real wealth here.  Live and thrive in the great new land.

http://wildblueberries.net/maplehistory.html  a history of maple syrup

Harvest the riches, the abundance and the gold.  Tap the stream of sap, of the maple sugar tree and be rich.  A prized product from the forest, maple sap, maple syrup, maple sugar.  This centuries old industry developed another uniqueness in the new world.  Unique fur traders, unique sugar maple.  An identity is being born.  A connection to the land and to it’s people.  A connection of trade and business.  Something new to send back to the old world of France. There is nothing like it in Europe.  Interesting.  Curiosity and intrigue develops.  What of that great land across the ocean.  What else is there in that vast frontier?

Slowly, but slowly, the colony increases.  Slowly, but slowly, it ignites the fire of imagination.  Yes, they will come to Canada, even if forced by royal decree, they will come.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

May 31, 2016

 

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The Renaissance

Hail Bravehearts

This journeys end is a new beginning.  This preparedness that painstakingly ensures success is finally our triumph.  Glory and praises, thankfulness and relief, the weary are welcomed.  Come, join us.  Into this fair land of sunshine and wild, of a place of unusual gold.  Riches and fortune, made for a king.

Praises, praises, we have a colony.  At the time of the founding of Quebec city, France was the most populated country in Europe,  yet they had difficulty finding willing settlers to inhabit this great land and to build this great country.  The awesome enticement of riches from the great wild, couldn’t even entice the impoverished slaves from the lower classes to leave the slums of France.  But what does it take to be a fortune hunter, a settler, a soldier and a daredevil?  What qualifications did they need? Perhaps a poor peasant wasn’t the best choice for the colonies.  Slaves might be too fearful and prisoners might be too dangerous.  Choose wisely, oh mighty ones, your day of reckoning will come.

No longer the grandeur of 17th century France.  The life of the  impressive French Renaissance.  Brilliant change and brilliant invention.  Who would leave this awesome place?  Look around yourselves, your good fortune lies here.  Here in the homeland of brilliant France, where the arts are thriving and life is good.  Who would leave this wonderful place, this wonderful life, and venture into the hardship and conflict of life in a colony?  Who dares to be first?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Renaissance

The appeal of colonial life and of making a new country, was not at the top of the list of dreams for the French.  Only those brave few, would dare the Atlantic crossing and venture into the unknown.  Stalwarts and bravehearts, skilled and courageous, colonial life was too daunting an adventure for the polished, sophisticated, countrymen of France.

A backbreaking adventure, a risk of life and limb, a intolerable climate and connections to a people of unknown character.  Life in a fort, in crowded conditions, with bare necessities and humble accommodation.  The freemen of France looked upon the life in a colony suspiciously.  Stumble and fall, stumble and fall, but rise and shine and pursue the adventure once more.

For those who finally ventured forth, into the new, into the unknown, the challenges of life abroad would change the face of North America.  As small as the tiny fort was, it still made a mark in the land, a change in the landscape, a place of accommodation, an establishment and a secure dwelling for those who dared.  Now over 400 years old, the city of Quebec is a thriving city of old and new, of charm and charisma.  A beautiful old place of French pride.

Connect to the people, connect to the countryside.  Learn and teach, the life in the colony will be hard, but finally the adventure is won.

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

May 15, 2016

Oh Most Divine
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Oh Most Divine

Hail all you brave ones.

 

Oh glory and honour to this majestic king.  We worship you, we praise you, oh blessed immortal being.  Salvation and glory to this oh risen Lord.  We hail thee and praise thee, with prayers and adoration, oh deity divine and humanity saved.

Blessed Lord of centuries past, generations of followers still believing, still pursuing, still curious and understanding, still searching and seeking, the devout persisting, what are these holy ways?  Powers immense, of magnificent proportions, intervention and instilling the knowledge of these mysterious ways.  Providence and grandeur, might and mightiness, still the stable, with the lowly, still the path of righteous living.  Oh greatest of Lords, oh highest of beings, oh teacher of wisdom, we praise thee, with song, with prayer, with labour, with love, with gold, with skills and with honour.  Teach us, oh wise one, teach us to be human.  Oh deity of the great divine, hold us mercifully in you hands.

So duty calls you, oh awesome human, come to the colony, do your duty, come to the colony and be praised.  The wondrous one, of heavens keeping, the glorious, will guide your way.  Come and be magnificent, join the grandeur, mighty and noble and courageous to this day.  Come and worship, come and be guided, oh you most daring, you fortunate, you awesome, you lucky ones, to be the fortitude of France and to seek your fortunes in this most auspicious place.

Lucky are we, to be the chosen ones, the one who will survive and sing glories to our King.  Praises!  Praises!  To overcome the shadows of hardship and poverty, to overcome the cruelty of harsh judgement and misunderstanding, to overcome the elements and live once more.  Hail to you, oh awesome almighty ones, to be first.  First in a game of daunting obstacles, first in a challenge of courage and fortitude, first in a roll of the dice as to who will survive.  Lucky you, to be the chosen ones, come to the colony, take up the dare.

http://www.historymuseum.ca/virtual-museum-of-new-france/population/immigration/  come to Canada

A fort, a sweet road, Cap Diamond, a church, the Victorious,  government dwellings, low ground and high ground, lower echelons and higher dignitaries, merchants and sailors, government and leadership, all finally together in one place, the colony of New France.  Oh sweet Quebec, you finally survive, oh sweet Quebec, you finally exist.  A colony, one sweet place, a colony, for France.

Over a span of several decades, the colony grew.  From its roots in human sorrow, to a place of quaint ingenuity and charm.  Boldly go where no one has dared to go before, oh brave colonialists of bygone era.  The seat of the country lies in your hands.  Negotiate and trade, bargain and develop.  Oh brave new world of French imperialism, of French might and fortitude.  Oh brave new world.  The king of kings holds you dear and in his arms, his strength shall hold you.  Oh wondrous love, to live so greatly.  Power and praises to our king.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

April 27, 2016

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The Great Good

Good Day, you awesome human

Praises, to you and to yet another wonderful day.

The great planet has intrigued us yet again.  Fishes that look like elephants, white lions, new butterflies, imagination, creativity, brilliance.  Oh to be you, great mother Earth, with all of the gifts of creation.  The milleneums roll past with their constant changes, destruction and war, pestilence and strife, pollution and pesticides, garbage and waste, plunder and greed.  Still the Earth rolls on,with her magnificence and power.  Oh, great awesome one, with skills so immense, it’s unthinkable!  Power and might, life belongs to you.

Praises, fabulous creator, the life blood belongs to you.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/earthpicturegalleries/9753208/New-species-found-walking-catfish-Beelzebub-bat-and-two-legged-lizard.html

Hurling through space to seek your place in the universe.  Tiny by comparison, but with a mission that must be fulfilled.  Life forms on all of your surfaces.  The new, the unusual, something superb.   A new life, the unknown again, awakening our eyes to the new adventure.  So, great human, you’ve been everywhere, done it all, there’s nothing new now.  The oceans explored, space travel accomplished, the pinnacles of mountains reached.  Where to now, for the mind and body of man?  Where now, for the spirit to call us?  All feats accomplished, all stones have been turned.  All quests fulfilled.  The power of the human, so mighty and intelligent.  Technology, engineering, development and creativity.  A unique and special mind, controlling the planet, bending and twisting, changing and developing.  A constant pursuit of knowledge that intrigue and curiosity propels.  What is that?  How does it work?  How do we make that brilliant, special interest our own creation.  How to control the planet and make it’s mysteries our own.

The fabulous planet spins it’s own wonderful web of mystery and intrigue.  Do we know it all?  Have we found and conquered it all?  Rest in peace oh great creator, you are the most blessed.  Times change, the weather hurls it impact at us,  driving blizzards, scorching sun.  The heat is warming the surface and the snow melts from our yards.  Global warming encroaches and trees start to bud.  The awe of creation is still your magic.  Creatures rise and creatures fall. The age of the dinosaur and the age of man.  The unknown belongs to you.  Where will you take us, in the magic ride? New environments?  New creatures to discover?  New landscapes to present themselves and to challenge our bodies and our minds.  As the surface is blasted with war torn madness and the oceans fill with plastics and waste, we scramble to stop the doom of the planet.  Whose doom is it anyway?

The sun rises and sets in regular motion, the moon follows it’s path across the sky, the waves pound and crash as the tides roll in and out.  Regular, like clockwork the natural process continues.  We take it for granted, it’s always been there.   Oh, and praises, human for making a garbage can, somewhere to put the constant refuse.  Garbage dumps and pile high, rotting stench,  another kind of pollution.  So much destruction for the great mother to bear.  All of her children, her marvelous creation, secumbing to the blast of wanton wastefulness and recklessness.

So this is us, the human, so awesome and brilliant.  Will you save us great planet?  Or do you other designs.

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

March 12, 2016

 

The Great White Mountains
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The Great White Mountains

Hail Bravehearts

It is with great pleasure that this winter is warm and snowy, and that it brings us sport.  Fabulous pleasure, a great day for a ski.  Downhill skiing is the easiest sport in the world.

The balmy mountain weather hovers above -10.  A warm, sunny February, brings us out of our snug homes, to smile and greet yet another sunny day.  Stay home this winter, no need to travel south.  As the snow birds fly away each year, to sunny summer climates, in the warm tropics, those hearty winter lovers, stay home, for the delightful winters time.  Peace to us all.  This is a great one.

The drive to find snow, this year, has made this an easy, more carefree year.  The pussy willows are out, a sapling in a warm spot has started to bud,  the snow melts on the sidewalks, energy bills plummet.  Global warming is a nuisance. It brings too much cold in the East and fabulous, warm, sunny skies in the West.

A day on the slopes, warm enough to stay out all day!  Our weekly snowshoe day has taken us on excursions to find that soft fluffy snow. We lather on sunscreen and snowshoe in our shirts.  Too warm for winter coats.  The birds sing to us as we pass and flocks gather in the trees.

It’s beautiful and warm and a day on the ski hill is just so easy.  No frostbite, no frozen cheeks, no frost beards, or icicle eyelashes.  No chalet skiing, from days too cold to stay outside.  No complaints of frozen toes and frozen fingers, too long in food lines and too long drinking hot chocolate.  The warm winter weather gives us a boost of excitement. We can play outside in the snow!

I push off from my spot at the top of the mountain and fly down my usual terrain.  Easy, easy, it’s just so exhilarating. After thirty years of this, skiing is easier than walking.  The mountain is so familiar, I know these runs well. Perfectly groomed, all the holes have been patched and we compliment the groomers on yet another year of snow moving, that makes the mountain more enjoyable and less dangerous.  No slipping over rocks and crashing down the hill.  No entanglements with saplings as they catch your skis.  No snow monsters or snow snakes, tripping you on your way.  No, this is just perfect.  It’s a perfect day for a ski.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilRI4zKoBPo  extreme skiing

Global warming has it’s drawbacks, we gloat to one another, as the snow is starting to fall.  Our winter wonderland of fluffy white stuff is now a drive away.  Smiles and nods as the weather is co-operative.  The roads are open. Tourists flock to us and fill our town.  Trapped.

I know that the joy of today, is the doom of tomorrow, as our glaciers are slipping away.  As yet another natural wonder crashes off the mountain, and our water supply is threatened. That harsh reality will rear it’s head again this summer.  But for now, push off that mountain and glide your way along those dreamy snow covered slopes.  Fill your mind with winter.  Winter fun and winter play and how much we still adore it.

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

March 2, 2016

Those Special Wolves
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Those Special Wolves

Hail Bravehearts

Howl!  Howl!  We hear your call.  The great wild sings to us in the distance.  Howl, you essential masters, call to us with all of your voices.  Call with all of your hearts, your souls and your being.  Call us into the wild, where your lives live in the bountiful beauty of the great planet.  Sing to us, the songs of your lives, stories to tell of hunts and capture, of danger and courage.  Songs of triumph, songs of sorrow, songs of fortune.  Sing, you great masters of the wild, sing the songs that we love to hear, the wild that makes us unique and proud.

Great stories, of taking the weak from the herd, of preventing overgrazing and of population control. Songs that we listen for, as we camp in the wilderness.  Do you hear it?  Listen, do you hear it?  The howl of the great wolf as he calls to his pack.  Eerie and exciting, the mystery revealed.  A great hunter, with his family, teaching and learning the life lessons of survival.

Oh essential hunter, your numbers decline.  Save us!  you call and we hear your plea. The bounty hunter slays you and murder increases.  Not us in Canada, this is not our cultural history, the fur trade wasn’t this.  The negotiated peace was cemented by the great peace of the union of a European and a Canadian aboriginal.  The tie between them was the Metis child. Not murder, not poaching, not extermination.  The balance between the hunter and the hunted was for trade and peaceful relations among the people, not for the extermination of a species.

The great wild calls us, it is a teacher to us.  So many species of plants and animals, so much natural wonder and so much sound to hear.  Varieties of rock to cling to and different soils beneath the surface.  The Earth puts those species in the places they belong.  Hail, great planet, we hear your call, as the wolf cull in British Columbia defies the sensibilities of environmentalists , and is regarded as inhumane and a disaster.  This is not Canadian culture, or our history.  This is not the fur traders, or the aboriginals. This is over hunting, over killing. We need these animals, we need wolves.

http://pacificwild.org/take-action/campaigns/save-bc-wolves  Save BC Wolves

A wolf is a beautiful thing.  A fine hunter, an adept and agile predator, with his necessary presence in reducing overpopulating species.  The small ones like rats and rabbits, or large ones like elk and deer.  They prevent  overgrazing from overpopulation, that diminishes plants and destroys ecosystems.  There must be a predator-prey balance for proper bio diversity, not just for one species, but for the entire ecosystem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb11TtPwBxo  lady reunites with wolves

Predators are not a bad thing, they are an essential part of the great wild.  Listen to the great planet as it sings to you.  The wonderful mystery of integrated life forms, sharing a space especially adapted to them.  Spaces of rock and granite, of wind and rain, of sand and sun, coral and sea, forest and dale.  Spaces of uniqueness with unusual creatures to inhabit these landscapes.  No coincidences, just planned environments with creatures, plants, water and rock, all fascinating and wonderful. A journey for our senses, our minds and bodies.  A journey of life, of discovery, of adventure.  Fresh and wholesome, protect it all.  A magnificent species, a majestic great wild, adventure in, for the joy of their being, it is  into their home, that we roam.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

February 22, 2016

 

Happy BioDiversity
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Happy BioDiversity

Hail, you almighty ones

Welcome to this day.  The world sings in praises of a great marine mammal.  Hail, to you, for the acknowledgement.

Wonderful world for the brilliance of diversity, of bio diversity, of the protection of ecologically sensitive species and areas.  Wonderful world for its rare and special places, for species adapted to unusual survival, to survival skills of unique and unusual specifications.  To the awesome great planet for its creativity and power.

Lucky you, you awesome human, to inherit such a wonderful world.

Your duty surrounds you, nurture and care.  Be it the small, tiny grain of wheat, that nourishes you, the flour of sustenance, the bread of sustainability.  Your crops from fertile soil, your harvest,  your life support, your energy.

Relax into the cool, tranquil waters that sooth  your body and your mind.  Relax into the sweet sunshine, where daydreams emerge and freedom promises it’s escape.  Relax into the heavenly sounds and aromas of the great planet, fill your ears, your eyes and your minds with wonder.  Awesome planet, it’s ours for the saving.

There are many blessed days, many blessed times and moments.  The wonder of creation captures us and holds us spellbound in it’s splendor.  The unusual, the rare, that special exclusive place, worry free and divine.

Rest your weary souls, your weary minds, your hearts and your bodies, in this captivating world of the great divine.  Listen to the heartbeat of the planet as it beats its rhythm of joy to you.  Joy of living, joy of purpose, joy of creativity and knowledge.  Hear us, calls the mighty planet, as it sings it’s songs of joy to you.  Almighty human, tread with care, these are my offspring too.

https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/world-whale-day/  Happy Whale Day

The mightiness of adoration, as the world turns and challenges us.  Another species, rare and fine, protect us.  Find joy and comfort, peace and harmony, share the goodwill.  Your mind and spirit relax in the oasis of comfort.  A lounge chair by the water.

Water and lakes, pools and oceans, sleep and relax in your dreamy time.

Tiny crustaceans come out to play.  Shells sparkle in the sunshine, the winter’s cold rushes away and the sun warms you and keeps you well.

It’s a national day.  A day for reflection and action, a day to notice and to fight.  This great planet belongs to us, not to plunder, but to enjoy, not to pillage, but to sing about.

Fabulous earth sounds echo in our ears.  Winds of winter with warm escapes.  Oceans of wonder with species galore.  Hail to the almighty planet, wherever in the world you come from.

The richness of biodiversity greets us at our doorsteps.  Creatures of magnitude, great and small, all playing their necessary part in the ever evolving world of change.  Speak to us, oh great masters of the universe, speak to us, as the Earth creates again.  The evolution of millenia.  The tides roll in, the snow falls, change and change again.

Reach out your hand and touch it.  Don’t let it pass you by.  Hold onto that dream, of relief from the storm, of days of paradise, where the world is peaceful.  Hold on to those species as unique and special as those places are.  The great divine, the fabulous world , the magical planet, for you, for me and for eternity.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

February 13, 2016

 

Pioneers
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Pioneers

Hail Bravehearts

 

Welcome to this glorious new day.  A step for you, in the right direction, can take you anywhere.

Your skills ,your education, your accumulated knowledge, your comrades, your team.  All locked together in this fight for success. Your ship awaits, climb aboard.  Take this first, irreversible step, and venture forth, to the great unknown.

It is not implausible, it’s been done before. Success was marginal, but imperative to try.  You must try, say the great masters, you must will yourselves to obey.  The command is difficult, but some must follow. Off to the colonies, oh brave pioneers.

The wind whispers in their hair.   Warm, gentle breezes, lift their spirits, the waves roll and rock the boat, the ocean smells of salt and sea water and ocean animals rise to the surface for a look at them.  Trespassers in the ocean of the great wild, passers by in this fragile ecosystem of sea.

Stand tall, almighty ones, your names are counted and your lives are engraved in the history of our frontier.  Stand tall on the deck, facing your future, do not look back, the past is gone and you will not return to it. Do not look back.  France, the most populated nation in Europe at the time, could only muster a few hundred brave souls to settle and populate a great land.  Build and settle, populate the land, negotiate and trade, farm and pioneer.  Not an easy task in a land so uncompromising.  Snow and cold, the bitter winter winds howl and scarce food sources decline.  But brave stalwarts are these who settle the land.  The peaceful and helpful natives give the support that they can, and forts and settlements emerge from the dark and forboding forest.

Light.  Light in the darkness of their days as the shadows recede and the sun can shine in. Light and hope.

As the summer fades and the long shadows of winter cling to the ground, hope will come to your rescue.

http://www.genealogy.umontreal.ca/en/LesPionniers

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

February 11, 2016