#11 Niagara Escarpment: Let's Take Canada!

When Covid hit, there were a lot of comparisons to the Spanish Flu of a hundred years earlier.  I bought myself a Corona because it seemed appropriate and then settled in to try to do my part, like the rest of you, to get through another pandemic.

When the current U.S. president started expressing his desire to annex Canada and erase the 'artificial line' that stood in his way, we were reminded of similar rhetoric from 200 years ago.  That time it was Thomas Jefferson who said: "The acquisition of Canada this year ... will be a mere matter of marching."

In the War of 1812, Canadians rose to stand on guard.  Many gave their lives, like Tecumseh and Isaac Brock, to defend our land.  This time around, Patty and I felt that the way we could  best stand on guard was more comparable to Laura Secord's.  Take a journey with a message.  

My meditation as we traveled across the Niagara Escarpment where the last battle was waged came from Psalm 33.  God takes the wind out of political pretense, he shoots down the world's power-schemes.  God's plan for the world stands up, all his designs are made to last.  Blessed is the country whose God is the LORD; blessed are the people he's put in his will.

Of course we desire some of the same things that came out of the War of 1812.  The citizens of the Canadas for the first time became deeply united as a people as First Nations, Black former slaves, European settlers and British soldiers all pitched in together.  The peace that resulted between First Nations on both sides of the fight, and between two neighboring countries was profound.  We want those things to happen again and more than that, that Canada will once again turn to our Creator God as Lord of our nation.  So, like Laura Secord, we've gone on a journey to see full Peace and Reconciliation brought to our land.



Popular posts from this blog

#1 A Single Step

Image
Laozi said that ‘the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step’. In our case, the journey of 32,000 kilometers started with a date ... at the James Ave Pumphouse Food & Drink in Winnipeg. Adventures are my thing - not Patty’s. Her perfect holiday is visiting family at the end of a tried and familiar path. I thrill to the unknown. Our common ground is wanting to make our lives worthwhile. To walk by God’s leading. So when I get the idea for an adventure (and this happens regularly), the first litmus test to differentiate between a ‘Terry sparkler’ and ‘Divine calling’ is Patty’s response. I have learned that a good presentation doesn’t hurt my cause so I picked the setting carefully. The tables at the Pumphouse overlook a century-old collection of giant pipes and pumps – still covered in original grease. These were used to move Red River water to distant hydrants for fire-fighting. A restaurant with a combination of history (my love) and good food (Patty’s). P...
Read more

#2 The Forks, Winnipeg: Iau Descends

Image
It felt to me like we were standing on holy ground. Probably the same feeling I’d get if I was to visit the location where Moses saw the burning bush and where the tribes of Israel gathered around the base of Mt. Sinai to feel God descending with shaking and thunder and smoke. If I’ve put together the clues correctly, something very similar seems to have happened at the Forks. On the Mountains of the Prairie, On the great Red Pipe-Stone Quarry, Gitche Manito, the mighty, He the Master of Life, descending, On the red craigs of the quarry, Called the tribes of men together. From his footprints flowed a river, Leaped into the light of morning, O’er the precipice plunging downward Gleamed like Ishkoodah, the comet. And the Spirit, stooping earthward, With his finger on the meadow Traced a winding pathway for it, Saying to it, “Run in this way!” An indication that something special had happened here first came to light when an Anishinaabe elder approached Sid Kroker, the head archaeolog...
Read more

#4 Dominion City MB: That’s a Bit Audacious!

Image
A few people tagged along on the first leg of the journey from The Forks to Dominion City. We were hungry and I had promised a special lunch, but first I wanted to tell three stories from local lore. Countess of Dufferin In 1877, t ogether with her husband, the Governor General of Canada, the Countess of Dufferin was visiting Manitoba for diplomatic reasons. I hope she brought her rail-working clothes because she was roped into pounding in the first spike on the first railway in Western Canada. When finished, it would connect Winnipeg with St. Paul, MN. Having done the deed , the Countess and the Governor General boarded a paddlewheeler heading south up the Red River on their way home. En route they passed another paddlewheeler heading north and carrying the Countess of Dufferin. Confused? This particular C of D was a locomotive named after the lady in the other boat. They waved at each other (actually I’m not sure about that) never to see each other again. T he locomotive ...
Read more