Category Family
A Century Later
When time stands still it can be pretty impressive. My sister dropped off an envelope of family photos she thought might be of interest. Included was one of my paternal grandmother, Isabelle Anderson, taken on a visit to Parliament Hill in October 1922. Given that date, I think I can say with confidence that my […]
Remembering in 2022
I took time today to remember those Canadians who fought and died for democracy. Two minutes of silence at 11 a.m.isn’t much, but it is gesture with huge symbolic meaning. That sadly seems less fashionable as the years go by. Earlier this week I was walking on the campus of the Royal Military College in […]
Seven-Year Reflection
It seems like it was yesterday. Nerve-wracking doesn’t begin to describe it. Seven years ago today I was at the Ottawa Heart Institute, waiting for my wife to come out of surgery. The doctor had said this was his specialty, that he had done the procedure a thousand times. Never lost a patient. Reassuring yes, […]
Keeping Warm
I remember the patched holes in the celing, one in each room. I didn’t think much about them. It was the house my grandmother lived in, the one where my father was born. I spent a lot of my childhood visiting. Small-town Ontario was a different world for an urban dweller. The holes, I realized, […]
The Powdered Stuff
We’re into the home stretch of my trip abroad. I’m definitely at the point where I just want it to be over with, to get home to routine. Still a few more days to go though, so a few more of my favorite posts from the past to share. This one is from 2017. Sometimes […]
Simple Logic
Our re-runs continue, but I thought we should take a break from travel for a couple of days. I wrote this one in 2015. I’m not sure if my mother ever read it – she didn’t make it online until 2017, when she was 88. She read the daily posts here, but she never mentioned […]
Mother’s Day Reflections
Today is Mother’s Day in Canada and the USA. Probably elsewhere too. It is going to feel a bit strange. COVID-19 was raging the past two Mother’s Days. People might call Mom, but they didn’t go see her. This year, I think, a lot of people will risk an in-person visit. But not me. This […]
Gotta Have Choices
Family members like different toppings, so I made two pizzas. The truth is, I don’t like veggies on my pizza. No-one else in the family has problems with them. They would eat my all-meat version, but they prefer some variety. Both tasted delicious according to those who sampled them. What are your favorite pizza toppings? […]
Remembering A Role Model
Today would have been my father’s 96th birthday. It is also the 11th anniversary of his death. Somehow he managed to begin and end his life on April 10. Like all of us, he was a complicated man. I have many unanswered questions about choices he made back when I was a child, and even […]
The Phone Call
I didn’t recognize the voice when I picked up the phone and heard “Hey grandpa!” Having just become a grandparent, I figured it was one of my friends calling to congratulate me. But I wasn’t sure which one. So I continued to talk, hoping i would be able to figure it out without the embarassment of […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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