My heart is with the family and community who are experiencing loss.
March 20th will be the first day of spring for this year.
Does this year seem like it’s flying by too fast or like each day is inching forward?
When my kids were very young, still diaper babies, we lived in Terrace for a number of years. While living there I felt like I was ‘getting through’ a lot of days. Starting a new career, my partner was away for work most of the time, managing the schedule of two toddlers and carrying out the chores of the house. It felt like a never-ending pile of things that needed my attention at any given point of any day.
The days of young children feel like they were just in the recent past and so long ago. What I didn’t anticipate was that Terrace would have a nostalgic feeling for me. When I lived there I didn’t have a prominent feeling that it was home. Now, almost a decade later, so much of it seems familiar and welcoming.
One thing that has changed, Terrace has a new beautiful facility, Ksyen Regional Hospital. Most of the reasons to end up in the hospital are not reasons that I would wish for anyone. However, if you do find yourself at the new hospital in Terrace, it is such a great asset for Northern BC. Everything in there is very well thought out and the staff seem very pleased to be working in their new offices and building.
As we head into spring, and we’re feeling the passing of time, the dark days of winter seem to have really affected our collective spirits this year. General optimism seems hard to come by. When heading out to get a couple things from the grocery store, it will be easy to find folks saying things like:
‘I just have no energy these days’
‘I can’t remember the last time I felt excited’
‘Everyday tasks are hard to get to, but it seems like that’s all I do’
Take vitamin D in hero doses. Get active and moving. Plan personal, work and medical trips during this time of year. Yoga. Therapy. Visit with friends. Attend community events. Wake up each day being grateful. All great advice that I have been given this year.
Upcoming Community Events: I would recommend to every one of the community organizations out there planning for events, please send them into Haida Gwaii News. A lot of what I’ve been attending has been through word of mouth, but I keep checking the section at the back of this paper to see what is coming up. This newspaper is a great resource for our communities and I look forward to watching it grow.
For me, the challenge of this time of year is the gray and soggy day that you can often look out your window to see. I genuinely believed that I wasn’t affected with seasonal sadness, believing that I could keep my spirits up through sheer willpower and mental strength. But if I’m being honest, most years I do end up taking advice on how to keep myself from sliding into feeling the gray clouds too deeply.
You are not alone. Whatever season gives a feeling that is heavy or less bright, your community has ways to connect. Social connection, even if you have to push yourself to attend, ends up creating the memories of your time as you pass through the seasons of life.
If you happen to have made it through the dark and cold of winter with your spirit still bright, share your methods with people you care about.
Submit your upcoming events to be printed in your local newspaper!