Helen Audrey Stewart was born on Jan. 31, 1922 in Fort Frances, Ont. and left us Sept. 14, 2017 in Alaska with two of three sons by her side. She was an outdoors woman, as comfortable hunting and fishing with her sons and husband as she was serving tea. She […]
Wendi Stewart – Wendi with an ‘eye’
Wendi lives in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley, but the farm on Rainy River in Crozier will always be her home. MEADOWLARK, her debut novel released September 15, is published by NeWest Press of Edmonton. She is the mother of four daughters who did the unforgivable: they grew up. http://wendistewart.writersresidence.com
I made it to Dawson City. I don’t know if you are aware, but this is a very large country. Did you know this? It takes a great deal of time and patience, with some chanting and meditation and deep breathing and assuring yourself that you will survive another three […]
I am a rule follower. I struggle to go in the “out” door. Jaywalking is a challenge. Rebellion wasn’t hard-wired into my genes. I’m not sure that is a positive attribute–despite the ease for my parents during my teenage years. I think I can blame my father. His brand of […]
I leave for the Yukon today (Sept. 6). For the next four months, I will call Pierre Berton’s childhood home my home–an honour and privilege that still surprises me. I think part of me believed this wasn’t really happening, but that it was all an imagined dream. But I’ve received […]
It’s a very hot day. I’m hot–but not in the way one would like to be hot. I think it is the hottest day yet this year. This kind of day zaps any evidence of ambition that may have been dwelling in my cells and grinds said enthusiasm to dust. […]
I used to think I would be an excellent skier if I had good skis and, of course, matching attire in very cool colours. Something slightly more form-fitting than my black-and-orange Moto-Ski snowsuit that kept the cold from my skin while I stood on Pembina Highway waiting for the Winnipeg […]
I was in line at a small grocery store the other day and the woman in front of me was struggling to retrieve money from her purse. Her fingers weren’t co-operating and she appeared to be rushing, which intensified her struggle. The two check-out teenagers looked at me apologetically and […]
August snuck out from behind the weeds in my garden and from my so-called lawn and pounced on me, when I least expected it. August caught me off-guard and threw me to the ground before I could fight back, and then knocked the last bit of oxygen from my lungs. […]
I just had the great fortune of spending time with Aimee, daughter #1, and my wee grandson, Linden, who is three. The moments we spend with family are far too rare these days but when it happens, I ask the cells of my heart to take it all in; to […]
A cat is a home’s visible soul, said Jean Cocteau. If that is the case my home’s soul is visibly in need of vacuuming. I have moments when I am sweeping up pet hair from my floors and from my furniture for the fourth time on any given day, moments […]
The lakes of Northwestern Ontario have the power to restore a soul. And if scientists should test that hypothesis, they would concur–and it would be documented and written up in medical journals and the like, and everyone would know what Fort Frances residents (and those in surrounding communities) have known […]
If your heart is aching or unsure of itself, if the world feels heavy and makes no sense, I happen to know a cure. It’s organic and homeopathic so it will treat the heart, the brain, the soles of your feet–and it comes with an infallible guarantee. Follow my instructions […]
