Friday the 13th

Good Morning,
Yesterday was very Smokey here, the heat is on, and sadley our province is feeling the impact of climate change with fires raging and emotions and stress running high. Yesterday I wrote something I’m sharing here, not to cause controversy, but because I along with a lot of others are listening to and seeing everyone pointing fingers at what’s happening in our fire fights. And I am not about to say they are right or wrong, and I understand that people’s emotions and anger has to be directed somewhere.

We have to remember when fires are being fuelled by these conditions, conditions we have not seen before. The people who are working are doing all they can. They don’t want to lose a house or community they too have families and would likely rather be home than spending 14+ hours per day doing all they all the while being at the mercy of Mother Nature, people pointing fingers and trying to place blame help no one, we need to support these working so hard, place blame later if you must, but now is not the time. There is fires storms around the world everyone is scared and tired and stressed beating up those doing the work just creates more stress. People are feeling like no one is doing enough, but there are many communities being impacted, resources are being deployed to various parts of Canada and the world, we ourselves have teams from Australia, Mexico, and clear across this country, but there is also unseen fires burning in other areas of Canada, and globally. This type of work is so extremely dangerous, and unpredictable. Sending people in to risk their lives in these conditions who are not trained is dangerous as well. Years ago they pulled people out of the pubs to go fight fires, many lives were lost in those days due to lack of knowledge of what these fires can do. This year we are seeing fires behaviour we have never seen, making it all the more dangerous and topped with conditions we have never seen. I am sure there will be much learnt and understood. The one thing I do know is people all need to start doing more to get our province and our country healthy again, and forget worrying about the cars on the road creating climate change, each and everyone of us need to look around our homes and property’s and see if we are doing what we can, what are we planting or not planting, what are we consuming and not consuming. Every one of us can make a difference. Also why when we new and we’re told this could be a bad year because of the dry conditions are crews having to spend days removing things that are ignition sources from in the yards of the neighbourhoods they are trying to save. People have to take responsibility that many have not or could not be bothered or whatever the issue to ensure that those things were done. That is the responsibility of each home owner, yet there they are spending countless resources and time doing what should be done each spring. Perhaps it’s time to put together neighbourhood work bees again to ensure neighbourhoods have these things done.
I am deeply saddened by the blame game, I’d rather we all learn and help to ensure things like this have less of a chance of happening. I’m deeply saddened over the loss of communities and history, and lives, I’m deeply saddened that so many are feeling the strain, I think we will all be feeling it for a long time, and with the accumulated stress from the pandemic post traumatic stress is going to hit many and many likely won’t even realize that’s what it is.
This weekend they have said will be “ catastrophic in nature, high temps, high winds, fir behaviour that is very erratic, we are all sitting holding our breath.
It is Friday the 13th a day that many say is bad luck, but I am choosing to believe it is not a bad luck day, but instead a good omen, ( I hope today I may be able to be right, I’m asking the universe for help in this).

So today regardless of if you think someone is to blame, remember on many levels we are all to blame, so let’s try to be kind, to show compassion and understanding, not stand in judgement. We are all feeling the impacts, we are all feeling the stress let’s keep that in mind and let’s also remember, that every time someone is saying negative things whether they are right or wrong it has a terrible impact on those who are actually the boots on the ground risking their lives everyday, they deserve our respect and gratitude whether we think any bureaucrats or departs there in are to blame. And even though you may think it won’t effect the moral of those on the front lines it will and does.
Please be kind, the coming days are going to be tough.