Yearend

As I look out on this December afternoon which is finally, after several days of gloomy cloud cover, showing blue sky and sunshine, I think about the upcoming New Year’s Eve.  I haven’t made New Year’s resolutions for a long, long time. Now if I want to change something about myself or set new goals I just do it.  Usually it occurs when I’ve reached a period of dissatisfaction or feel a need for change. In 2011 I started this blog and have managed to keep it up for a whole 12 months (I’ll probably keep at it for a while).  Whatever I plan to do or change in 2012 I’ve either already decided to do or will decide at some point during the year.

At this stage in my life I’m fairly satisfied. I have time to do the things I want along with family and friends to do them with, or the comfort with myself to do it solitarily. I’ve got a bit of money that comes in regularly which allows me to cover the basics, and work arrives on my doorstep periodically – this allows me to pay for some of the extra stuff. I have an exercise routine – long walks and yoga – that I enjoy and that keeps me fit.  I read voraciously and occasionally watch a movie.  Now and then I volunteer and when I can I make some charitable donations.  Maybe it doesn’t sound like a very exciting life, but it suits me for now.  I think we each need to strive for the life we want at whatever stage (and needs and wants do change).

I’m not perfect, so I’m working on improving some of my relationships. I don’t always eat as well as I should so I remind myself of this now and then. I like to learn and do new things so periodically I will take a class or join a new organization.  Gloomy weather gets me down, and there’s not much I can do about that, but it’s good to know sunshine returns eventually.

I know how lucky I am to live in this country, which, though it has its problems, is pretty amazing none the less.  I’ve worked hard a lot of my life not only to ‘make a living’ as they say, but also to learn about myself, what fits for me and what doesn’t, and how to get along with other people.  The learning never has to end.

Over the years I’ve had some stories published in magazines and anthologies, as well as broadcast over radio.  However, I haven’t been satisfied with the lack of progress in getting a book published through conventional channels – I’ve been trying this for a number of years.  So for 2012 I’m going to self publish one to three books and see where that takes me. I’ve already started getting a couple of short story collections ready for this publication venture.  Again I am learning and expect to continue to learn a lot.

Besides, 2012 is the Chinese Year of the Dragon and that’s supposed to be a good one for us Rats!

Soldiers' Children

Recently Jian Ghomeshi interviewed Murray Mclauchlan on ‘Q’ in regards to Murray’s new album. One of the things they talked about was that although Murray admired the courage of those Canadians willing to sacrifice their lives for principles in war, he still wasn’t in favour of war as a whole. This reminded me of an issue that gets very little play in our media: how children of serving soldiers are affected by their parents’ work.

In April 2007 the CBC had a news item that quoted Ontario’s Ombudsman (March investigation) as saying that “children are on the brink of suicide” at the Petawawa Military Base. The Ombudsman said that the number of children in need of counselling had increased ten-fold as a result of Canada’s ongoing mission in Afghanistan. Due to a lack of resources these children were waiting up to six months for treatment. In his press conference (you can read the transcript at http://www.ombudsman.on.ca/Files/sitemedia/Documents/Investigations/SORT%20Investigations/20070416_transcript_military.pdf). The Ombudsman (André Marin) mentioned a young girl who collapsed to the floor one day just because she was called to the principal’s office; she was sure she was about to be told that her father had been killed. Between September and November 2006 so many soldiers were killed that flags at Petawawa flew at half-mast for 49 days straight. Marin said that children were suffering from such conditions as attention deficit, low self-esteem, difficulty interacting with other children, and even suicidal tendencies. The Ombudsman was asked if the situation was as bad at other military bases. Though this was not part of his report, he said that he had checked into it and there were apparently not as great problems in getting services in other places.  Thankfully, as a result of the report and due to increased funding from the province, wait times were reduced to 4 to 6 weeks.

What I still haven’t heard, and can’t find is not so much what services there are and what the waiting lists are, but what the children of Canada’s military are dealing with on an ongoing basis and what effect that this has on them both in the short and long term.  Is anyone researching and studying this?

Imagine yourself at the age of 5 or 10 or 14 knowing that your father or mother is in Afghanistan (or any other place where mines are deployed, convoys attacked, etc.). Even if the rest of your family tries to protect you from the news, you can’t help but hear about attacks and people getting killed. Would you have nightmares, trouble sleeping, trouble eating, have stomach aches, want to hide in your house and not answer to telephone or the door? Whose responsibility is what we are doing to these children? Isn’t it first of all their parents – do they ever think about what their so called sacrifice is doing to their children? And of course, it is our government that is deciding to send soldiers to these places – what are they doing to support and help the families? Many in our society laud the sacrifice, the courage of the soldiers who go to help other countries to attempt to stabilize their societies. It’s time to think about the children of our soldiers and weigh the costs.

Advent

Today is the first Sunday in Advent.  It’s a Christian tradition, and though I don’t remember that my family was particularly religious (we didn’t go to church regularly) as I was growing up, we did keep Advent to some extent.  My mother made (or bought) and Advent wreath and lit an additional candle each Sunday until all four burned brightly.  I had an Advent calendar (not with chocolate in it) and opened a window each day of December until the 24^th was reached.  I haven’t kept the tradition of the wreath, but I buy an Advent calendar when I can find one, and last year I started my grandson on the tradition. Though this year, he decided he wanted to open all the windows at once.

I know that many Christmas traditions were taken over from so called pagan festivals.  The Romans had their December Festival of Saturnalia.  Scandinavians (and other cultures) had Festivals of Light. The Germanic people had wreaths and other winter traditions.

So I’m not sure if my mother was following a religious or family and historical tradition.

Apparently Saturnalia was originally instituted to raise the morale of citizens after a military defeat. It eventually grew to a week-long event, with drinking, giving presents, feasting, and visiting friends. Sound familiar?  A couple of different emperors apparently tried to cut the festival down to 3 or 5 days but the uproar from the citizens was so great, they couldn’t do it.

Anyway, back to Advent. For Christians, it’s the time to celebrate and anticipate the birth of Jesus (which historically can’t be pinpointed).  There is a lot of symbolism involved. The wreath is made of various evergreens, signifying eternal life. In Catholic tradition three of the candles are purple, one is rose. In some European countries the candles are all white – and that’s what I remember from my mother.  There are prayers, too that go with the lighting of the candles, but I don’t remember us saying any.

So, in the modern world, many of us choose our rituals for Christmas, whether they be Christian, secular or from some other faith.  It will be interesting to see what my grandson chooses to carry on as his traditions and rituals as he grows up.