“I don’t believe you’ll find that book at all interesting, since you’re not a mother yourself.” I remember it so clearly. I was speechless. We sat, side by side, in the front of her car. She was dropping me off after lunch together on a hot, late summer day. I had told her about a […]
When Terrible Things Have Been Done in the Name of Jesus
by on February 26, 2019 Leave a Comment
[Trigger warning: Violence, trauma, loss, especially as related to indigenous communities.] “You represent the ones who died in violent encounters as settlers took your land.” “You represent the ones who starved after overhunting.” “You represent the thousands who died from diseases spread by the colonizers.” We started out as 15 people, standing on blankets spread […]
In Honour of Black History Month
by on January 31, 2019 Leave a Comment
I am a Black Woman. I am a black woman who is a Canadian citizen. I am a black woman who was born in Trinidad where I spent the first quarter of my life and I now call Vancouver, British Columbia my home. I don’t feel qualified or that I even have the right to write […]
Letting Go of the Life We Had Planned
by on January 9, 2019 Leave a Comment
By Marlys Johnson | Twitter: @iMarlysJohnson They left a card on our oak dining table wearing an E.M. Forster quote: “We must be willing to let go of the life we had planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” While I spent my first holiday as a widow with family on […]
If Justice Isn’t the Key to Healing, Then What Is?
by on November 20, 2018 12 Comments
In November of 1984, I was eight years old. I remember walking home from school, with the crunch of snow beneath my feet and the sun sinking quickly in the early winter sky. Making the way home seemed ominous and full of danger. It wasn’t just the darkening woods or the long stretch of busy […]
