Articles
Change
I am in a certain stage of my life as a woman in her late forties. I am a Gen-Xer; I smirk, but also reminisce when I see something deemed retro from the 80s and 90s. Today, I received my first mammogram, something that will become more routine because that is part of life as a woman who is “midlife.” Despite the discomfort, I want to know my body. I will soon face what some have dubbed The Change. The moniker for menopause seems a bit much in my mind: isn’t that life, change? King Solomon’s words come…
Read MoreBridges and Barriers
by Harmony McMillan “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other”. -Mother Teresa A couple of years ago, I worked with a group of Grade 8 students on a project called “Craft Reconciliation”. The nation-wide challenge was to use Minecraft to create a city that represented our vision for reconciliation in Canada. Along the way, schools were invited to share in conversations about “what reconciliation looks like” in their local contexts. Our classroom, made up of primarily First Nations students, partnered with a classroom in Newfoundland,…
Read MoreThe Gift of Reconciliation
By Katelyn Stamler Reconciliation has always felt like a heavy word to me. I was first introduced to the concept in university. As a student in the education program at the U of R, we were presented with the topic early and often. I still remember the horrible feeling in my stomach as I sat through my first ECS 100 lecture. There was a guest speaker that night and she came in to talk about reconciliation with Indigenous people. The entire point of her lecture seemed to be that as white Canadians we were responsible for the atrocities…
Read MoreAnticipation
By Nancy Taylor All of our lives, we live in anticipation. We wake up in the morning and listen to the weather, so we can dress in anticipation. We spend spring anticipating summer, summer anticipating September and return to school, and fall anticipating winter and Christmas. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines anticipation as “a prior action that takes into account or forestalls a later action”, but in general, we think of anticipation as pleasurable. Another definition of anticipation is “the act of looking forward, especially: pleasurable expectation” (Merriam Webster, n.d.). While we anticipate things both happy…
Read MoreOur Adoption Story
By Victoria Utman Four years ago, I learned that a quickening is the feeling an expecting mother has when their child moves beneath their breast- a stretch felt through the very muscle, sinew, and core of the woman as her baby develops inside of her. It’s a beautiful, active word and was brought up in a writing workshop I attended. Around this time, my husband and I had just begun our first serious conversations about beginning a family together and I instantly fell in love with the concept. “Quick” meaning alive or lively; the emotional made physical…
Read MoreWhen God Blinks
By Gayle Garneau When God blinks… My heart skips a beat. Panic soon follows. Is this the end? Am I alone? Abandoned? Without hope? Has He closed His eyes to me forever? Will He ever look on me again? What did I do wrong? Will I ever be good enough? Can I earn back His love? Why won’t He turn my way? When God blinks… “Don’t fret my child. I didn’t turn my back on you. I am always right here by your side. It was only momentarily that I looked away. A tear…
Read MoreQ&A Featuring Sheena Koops
Forward by Victoria Utman Full disclosure: When we set up this interview, I was frustrated. Tonight’s guest is our Talent Scout, my mother, Sheena Koops and it took three phone calls to hammer this out. If you know Sheena, you know that she is a game changer, move maker, and earth shaker. I often describe her to people that don’t know her as a “high power woman” and with that comes her God-given energy for justice, education, and advocacy. Yes, sometimes it’s challenging to get a hold of her, I never know what kind of adventure she’s on, but when…
Read MoreCourage
By Bonnie Baxter Courage I find courage inspirational, particularly when I see it in others. Sometimes it is found in the big things. We find it wrapped in grace as we fumble through. I think of times I’ve seen courage: my friends helping their young daughter through challenging years with cancer. my brother persevering through his heart transplant, and a family donating a heart to give him new life. three dear mamas all saying goodbye to newborn boys…and many others who have kept on living, really living, when a child they loved was gone. dearly loved older people walking forward…
Read MoreQ&A Featuring Deanna Cook
Forward by Victoria Utman Our editorial team wouldn’t be the same without our fantastic Copy Editor. You heard her speak about courage at Sister Triangle Retreat, but we just wanted to give you more! She is an educator with a big heart, a quiet leader in our loud world, and the authority here at Sister Triangle Magazine on all things grammatical. Please put your proverbial hands together for the one-and-only, Deanna Cook! Victoria: This is the most important question, which is why it is first: Coffee or Tea? Tell us why. Deanna: First thing in the morning, I…
Read MoreToo Zoomed In
By Jenn Wallace Now that I am in my forties, I am experiencing more and more phenomena related to aging; recently, I experienced yet another. I was reading the label on a pill container and had to move it further away from me than I am used to in order to read it: too close and the words were blurry. I was a little bit perturbed thinking, “Do I need bifocals already?!” I have since seen my optometrist who says for now I can lift my glasses but the time is coming. I’ve begun to commiserate with friends who…
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