Spring!

Spring is here!Spring is here!Spring is the loveliest time of the year.Flowers are blooming,Children are gay,Everything’s here for a wonderful day. This was the first poem I ever wrote. I was eight years old and at first I was inordinately proud of it. In fact, it was actually published in the Vancouver Province's Tillicum Club …

Freedom 2022

The world is in a parlous state and every day the news is more alarming, unfathomable, horrifying, heart-wrenching. Many people, including Prince William, have said, “We feel so helpless.” We all wish there was something more immediate and more significant that we could do to support Ukraine and foster peace, but I believe even the …

Freedom

There’s an old saying that the enemy of good is not evil but comfort. There’s also a fable about placing a frog in tepid water and then gradually raising the heat. The frog remains in the water until it boils to death because he drifts off and fails to notice the gradual increase in temperature …

Pudding

“The proof is in the pudding,” people often say, which of course makes no sense unless you have been pouring strong whiskey into your pudding. The original saying is, “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” You’ve got to taste it to know whether it’s good or bad. And there is a very …

NOT GOING AWAY

We’re here to stay until we’ve finished the work we came to do. That’s our message to anyone who wants to listen. The larger forms of life tend not to be great listeners. In our last dispatch we expressed cautious optimism about our campaign, but since that time our declining numbers have been of concern …

Remembrances of Time Past

When I was a child, my Dad would sometimes bring home Eccles cakes for a special treat. My brothers and I have happy memories of such occasions and retain a fondness for those little round pastries that contained currants and citrus and spices in pastry that had a shiny sugary surface and three little slits …

Lab Dispatch ABCV2020xv7v3

Our work continues to build steadily and we are pleased to report on the successes of our new generation, our colourful Covid Youth Squad, Omicron. Proud as we are of our history as the oldest life form on Planet Earth, we are especially chuffed to see what the Omicron generation is doing. Nimble and quick, …

Blanketing

At the start of this new year, my patio and the swath of grass beyond it were blanketed with snow. It was very beautiful out there, the whole world shimmering, white and inaccessible. It’s been snowing for the last week and the forecast each day has been for more, and more, and more. I got …

Darkness

The nights are getting longer and longer and, in many ways, the world seems to grow darker and darker. It’s cheering to see the Christmas lights celebrating the year and it’s good to know that as of Wednesday the days will be getting a little bit longer each day, although at first the brightening will …

More About Trees: Legacies

NOTE; A donation made by an anonymous donor means that all donations received between today and December 30th will be matched up to a total of $10,000. So please donate now for your donation to be matched! It’s been wonderful to see the response to my Tree Time blog. Many people donated and wrote positively about the …