Each time I went on a plane, no matter how many times I already mastered my nervousness, I still had fear of airplanes, yet when I somehow found the courage to fly, I ended up loving the plane because I knew that the plane would lead me to Disney World. But, as exciting, yet nerve-racking … Continued
Many different places I’ve been to in my travels have been inspirations in my writings. One place that continues to come back to mind is Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Through being a performing poet and touring writer poetry has granted me the ability to travel to many cities across North America and I haven’t returned to … Continued
It’s the scent of the place that keeps bringing me back, that lulls and haunts my memory when I am away from it. Miles of densely packed pine trees, woven and stitched together like a thick army: a force like that can’t help but emit not ripples but waves of their earthy perfume, rich and … Continued
Secret Beach My dreams spread across the sheet, each fragment captured in its own little box: Moraine Lake; the Saskatchewan River Crossing; The Athabasca Glacier; Sunwapta Falls; Maligne Canyon; Tofino; Clayoquot Sound; Ucluelet; Vancouver. I savoured each name on my tongue – some smooth as New World silk, others rough as the cedar bark cloth … Continued
Of all the places that I could spend my time the place that draws me the most is a lake shore in my home province of Nova Scotia, Canada. My husband and I have a small camp there. Our summer months are far too short so we are there as much as possible. Two months … Continued
I’m sitting at a square wooden table in the Brûlerie of Quebec City’s St. Roch – my neighborhood since December 2012. My ears will NOT defrost. I once read that Canada “is a country much too cold for good sense.” It’s -28°C outside. -38°C felt. I can only agree. A soya latte is slowly warming … Continued
This was my first big trip abroad and everything seemed to be going wrong. Exhausted after an eight hour flight (and a three hour wait at Heathrow earlier that day) by the time I arrived at Vancouver airport I was ready for the day to be over. But it wasn’t, and would not be over … Continued
There’s one way over the bridge and no stopping till the other side. The first time I was only nine. I watched out the window, saw the blue ocean, the shadows of the clouds, the sides of the bridge rushing by. I imagined people landing on the island at night in canoes and rowboats. The … Continued
You can’t drive here; you can’t boat here; you can’t even walk here… you’d be eaten. We’re somewhere in the back end of nowhere, some 300 kilometers from the closest paved road; 1500 kilometers from the nearest Whole Foods. If you cry wolf here, everyone believes you. It’s the third day of a week-long safari. … Continued
It was cold. We moved quietly, silently, around the campsite. The morning was barely breathing and the pale grey light held the landscape in suspense. “I’ll go in a canoe with you,” whispered Lucy. Without much need for communication from our leader, we launched the canoes and climbed in. The lake was cold, my legs … Continued