Day 7 - 115 -- A time to remember

Today is Friday. Odd that a weekend is upon us -- the days all feel the same, so weekends don't feel any different than other days for me at present. I plan to try to do a couple of different things this weekend to make it feel more like 'off' time -- may bake, cook, watch a movie from those saved to dvr, or spend time with the new puzzle.

The late afternoon was punctuated by an emergency alert message on TV and phone. The message noted that police in the Halifax Regional Municipality were attending reports of shots fired in two areas and that people should shelter in place and not travel until notified. I was about to put my coat on and go for my daily walk. Needless to say, I stayed inside even with this being just over 2 hours drive from here. The alert and idea that something else was going down shook me to the core. When the 'all clear' alert was sent, the furry one went into hiding. It is loud and gets attention well. The police spoke to say that after thorough investigation, it appeared that two reports likely were based on noise from a construction site. A third dealt with two younger males who had been sitting in a car in the parking lot of a hardware store, passing an air rifle back and forth. The conclusion was that people may be a bit on edge after events of the weekend -- an understatement in my mind. The few faces I've seen this week look very distraught, trying to make sense out of the senseless.

Today was a day of remembrance for the 22 killed last weekend. There were moments of silence at three time points -- for the campus community and the two alumni killed, a national moment and a moment with the evening virtual vigil -- standing on porches, driveways, and balconies to be with the neighborhood. Condolences, spoken and sung, aired on a 2-hour, commercial-free national broadcast on all networks. It was quiet and calm -- just what I needed today and I suspect many, many others needed, as well.

Today I want to share a song and a poem. The beautiful poem was written by Sheree Fitch in response to the killings. The link shared below leads to a brief CBC Radio interview where she reads the poem and then speaks to what was behind the words. The song today was borrowed from a good friend's social media page (Thanks <smile>). It reminds us that we need to let people know we care and not wait for a perfect time. Another dear friend tells us this often. Heed the advice; do it now. Keep safe. Enjoy!

Because We Love, We Cry -- Sheree Fitch (poetry reading)


Hear You Me -- Jimmy Eat World