Wishing all a good night

When all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a laptop and mouse. Forgive me, Clement Moore, but you wrote your iconic Christmas tale before the invention of the light bulb, much less a mouse with a decidedly different provenance. Unlike your age of the truly dark night except for an occasional flicker of candlelight, our nights are filled with light and movement.

World at night, NASA, 2012

Other than its beauty and the smallness of the world, this NASA image conveys a lot.  The lit-up spots represent areas of urban development.  They are also areas of lower rates of melatonin production, higher rates of shift work, higher levels of cancer, and likely higher levels of sleep disorders.

I receive calls from parents asking for advice. Sometimes the question is how do I get a child to school who doesn't want to be there.  There are three questions I ask the parent in response:

• Is your child afraid of going to school?  Is she waking up with stomach aches or is he unable to sleep at night?  Does your child have friends at the school? Has she told you that her former friends are now treating her badly?  Is he in pain or does he have bruises on his body?  Depending on how a parent answers these questions, it may indicate that a child is being bullied.
• Is your child struggling with her schoolwork?  Does he have trouble reading? Is she unable to concentrate in class?  Is he having difficulty sitting still in class?  Does she tell you that her classmates tease her and call her stupid? Has her teacher expressed concern about her ability to do classwork? Affirmative answers to these questions may indicate that a child has difficulties learning.
• Finally, is your child unable to get up in the morning?  Does she have difficulties falling asleep at night? Is your son so overly active that you wonder if he has ADHD?  Does he snore loudly or does he seem to stop breathing in his sleep?  Does she walk around like a zombie early in the morning and is she unable to concentrate during the day?  Positive answers here may indicate that a child is sleep-deprived.

There are legions of people who are sleep-deprived these days and according to Dr. Elliott Lee, a psychiatrist and world-renowned expert on sleep, this is taking a huge toll on us, on our ability to function, and on the quality of our lives.  Dr. Lee spoke at a public symposium at the Royal Ottawa Hospital last week and his talk was eye-opening!

Even the loss of only one hour sleep per night over time:

• Impairs function and reaction times equivalent to driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.05;
• Impairs the body's ability repair itself and fight off disease;
• Affects creative abilities;
• Affects the ability to concentrate;
• Affects physical energy;
• Contributes to substance abuse;
• Affects reasoning and memory;
• Can even affect survival.

A study published by Till Roenneberg et al also seems to indicate that lack of sleep contributes to obesity. And if all this wasn't enough, the lack of sleep is deeply affecting our children causing them to become fidgety.  It didn't come as a surprise when Dr. Lee stated that the symptoms of sleep-deprivation and ADHD are often confused in children.  

What advice do I give parents about getting children to sleep?  Take that computer, in fact Dr. Lee says all electronics, out of your child's bedroom.  You are the parent; not your child's friend.  Not only can a computer or tablet distract your child from sleep, the complete privacy of a bedroom can cause your child to become more vulnerable to online child predators. While your child may curse you now, she will thank you when she's older.

The other thing you can do is establish a sleep routine for your child.  Start at 7:30 or 8 p.m. every night, children need more sleep than adults, with a hot bath and a story in bed to prepare them for sleep.  The hot bath will set up their bodies for sleep while the quiet story in bed helps slow down their minds.

from A Christmas Anthology

One of the greater gifts you can give your children is a good and healthy sleep routine.  It sets them up for learning the next day.  It gives them physical energy and stamina.   And I know firsthand how it affects creativity.  These posts write themselves after I have a good night's sleep.  You'll have plenty of time to become your child's friend after he becomes a responsible adult.  Right now, he needs a parent who helps him learn about limits and the benefits of good routines.

Have a wonderful holiday everyone.  Or in the words of Clement Moore, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"


The views expressed in this post are personal opinions only.

Apartheid and First Nations' Schooling

Children asking for a school

I remember hearing about South African Ambassador Glenn Babb, who was posted to Canada in 1985. When Babb compared the plight of First Nations people living on reserves to Blacks under apartheid, it was controversial and apparently former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney was not amused. Since then, even Archbishop Desmond Tutu has looked at the similarities between the lives of Canada's First Nations people and Blacks in South Africa ('Apartheid envoy reviled in Canada', Globe and Mail, August 3, 2003).  According to some writers, notably Prof. John S. Saul of York University, this was no coincidence as much of the system of apartheid, particularly the Bantustan, was modeled on our First Nations reserves.  Now two decades after the fall of apartheid in South Africa, here we are in Canada with remnants of a dreaded apartheid-lite system still in place.

This is strong language but given the current circumstances and the history of residential schools, it is appropriate.  There are children in Canada who are treated in a discriminatory manner because of their race. These are the children who live on reserves under federal jurisdiction, where education is funded at a lower rate than for schooling under provincial jurisdictions. In fact, we don't actually know how much money reserves receive for education since, as I understand it, much is skimmed off the top for native research in universities and for administration. The federal government has not been forthcoming with the actual amount reserves receive on a per student basis.

In fact, at least 100 schools on reserves are considered unsafe, according National Panel on First Nation Elementary and Secondary Education.  Almost two years after its report was tabled,  it appears from an internet search that only a school in Attawapiskat has been built and after some delay, this school is scheduled to be completed by June 2014.

Let's take a moment to examine the proposed First Nations Education Act, originally scheduled to be tabled in January.  Aboriginal Affairs Minister Bernard Valcourt is now less clear as to when this legislation will come forward but if it does, it will be without consultation or buy-in from First Nations peoples.  After the disastrous history of residential schools in Canada, one would think that the federal government would want First Nations to be at the table to give some credibility to the proposal.  Instead the bill was written without prior consultation and Valcourt says he's now consulting -- on a piece of legislation that has already been written.  How could this after-the-fact consultation be seen by aboriginal leaders, particularly those with memories of residential schools, as anything other than a sign of bad faith?  

The proposed act allows the Minister to impose third-party advisors to administer reserve schools that do not meet certain standards.  The standards to be met are not spelled out in the proposed bill and it is likely that the cost for these advisors will come out of already meager reserve school funds.

Finally, there was no indication of increased reserve school funding in the Budget (see an earlier post) nor is there in this proposed legislation.  Without funding tied to actual need, including the socio-economic needs of children on reserves, there can be no improvement in student achievement.  On-reserve teachers are often paid far less and as a consequence, they tend to be new teachers without experience.  As well, there is no money for the other educational support staff that children, particularly needier children, typically require to succeed in school.  These include special education teachers, psychologists and social workers.  

We have student drives in many of our Ottawa schools to send books to reserves as there aren't any books. There is no money for libraries.  No money for sports facilities. And as I mentioned earlier, no money to provide even safe facilities.

These are fourth-world conditions in Ontario, for heaven's sake.  Northern Ontario reserves where the standard of living is so low that tuberculosis (TB) is still rampant. Health Canada states that:

For example, while the 2006 Census reports that Aboriginal peoples account for just under 4% of the Canadian population, 21% of all TB cases occurred in this population in 2008.

Most people including most First Nations leadership believe that education is the remedy to breaking the chain of poverty, illness and despair for aboriginal people.  Nelson Mandela also believed that education is the key for his people.  Are we fair-minded Canadians, who were willing to champion fairness for Black people halfway across the world, going to simply watch as our government continues to discriminate against First Nations people here at home?

I can no longer stand by and allow my government to enact a piece of legislation that I know is just plain wrong. I hope you will also look within your conscience and find a way to tell the government your opinion on this proposed bill.  See Shannen's Dream, a student supported initiative, for more information.  Or you can join with others seeking justice and fair funding for First Nations' education at a rally tomorrow, December 10 -- 11 am at Victoria Island or noon on Parliament Hill.  Enough is enough!



The views expressed in this post are personal opinions only.

Nelson Mandela and the rewriting of history

Nelson Mandela

While commentators rightfully remember Nelson Mandela's big heart, it seems they have almost forgotten his brilliant political mind. Mandela developed a highly successful economic boycott and it was Mandela from jail who led the largest global political force in history, the Anti-Apartheid Movement. Let's step back a moment and examine the history that led to the unlikely successes of three great men who are almost always mentioned in the same breath: Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.

Today we almost take for granted the recording of violence.  An unarmed young man repeatedly shot by police on a Toronto streetcar, a defenseless black man beaten in Los Angeles, and a young man standing up to a tank in Tiananmen Square are but a few examples we've seen.  The fact that we see these images at all is the miracle of modern communications and it has led to a decrease in the number and severity of incidents of violence.

Don't take my word on it.  The well-respected international journalist, Gwynne Dyer, does research on the incidence of war and violence. Here is what he has to say on the subject in an article, The Peaceful World.

Almost 90 million people died in the world wars and other big wars (including the Russian, Chinese and Spanish civil wars) of the first half of the 20th century, out of a world population that was one-third of what it is now. In the second half of the century the death toll dropped steeply to 25 million or so, most of who died in colonial independence wars and civil wars.  And so far, in the 21st century, the total is less than one million people killed in war. 

The other point Dyer makes is that we are riveted by violence.  It is the convergence of these two factors, global personal communications coupled with our fascination for violence that has ironically led to its decrease. This sounds ironic, doesn't it?  Gandhi, King and Mandela understood this and it allowed them to see that at times, the camera could become a substitute for the gun.  Yes, they all espoused non-violence at times, some times more than others, to promote change but it was the advent of mass communications that allowed non-violent tactics to work.

In April 1919, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place in Amritsar, India.  Unlike previously unreported British atrocities, the details of this massacre were revealed when Mahatma Gandhi held a public inquiry into the massacre and the results of his inquiry were reported internationally.  As a result, many British politicians echoed the words of Winston Churchill when he characterized the massacre as "monstrous".  Brigadier-General Reginald E.H. Dyer who had been the commander at Amritsar went from celebrated hero to a villain almost overnight.  The political fallout from this massacre continues to this day and just last February, Reuters reported David Cameron as being the first serving British prime minister to voice regret for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

As telegraph dispatches became television reporting, Martin Luther King, Jr. saw the opportunity of this new medium.  Dr. King's I have a Dream speech was heard by hundreds of thousands in person on August 28, 1963 during the historic March on Washington.  But in fact, the advent of television allowed Dr. King to speak directly to millions and his speech has been watched by over 8 million viewers on YouTube.

The Anti-Apartheid Movement was one of Nelson Mandela's and the African National Congress' greatest achievements.  The Movement used the power of mass media to mobilize opponents of Apartheid throughout the world.  By 1980, almost all Canadian youth had heard about the unjust incarceration of Nelson Mandela, the Sharpeville massacre, and the Soweto Uprising.  By then, many Anti-Apartheid South African refugees lived in Canada and thousands of Canadian youth were part of the Movement.

Throughout the '80s, the youth of the world mobilized against Apartheid.  We held weekly rallies. We withdrew our money from Canadian banks with ties to South Africa. We boycotted South African goods. Canadian churches, pension fund representatives and stockholders generally went to stakeholders meetings demanding divestment from South Africa.

It sure is interesting to watch the rewriting of history.  By the time Brian Mulroney pushed the Commonwealth for sanctions against South Africa in 1985, he did so with a South Africa that was already in economic trouble as a result of the effort of thousands of Canadians and millions throughout the world who had supported the boycott for years. Yes, Brian Mulroney acted ahead of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan but he only did so on the groundswell of an Anti-Apartheid Movement here in Canada. Take it from one who was there ... and from Gerry Caplan.  Here's a piece you may enjoy by Musa Okwonga, Mandela will never, ever be your minstrel.

What is the legacy of the three great leaders of the twentieth century?  A compassionate heart is important but Nelson Mandela himself always said that education was vital.  It was the coupling of those great hearts and minds that gave these men the courage to move forward even during their darkest days.  It was this strength that allowed Nelson Mandela to survive 27 years of incarceration unbroken. And it was their brilliance in understanding the possibilities of a new technology that allowed their non-violent tactics to succeed.

We teach reading and writing in our schools and the kids themselves have learnt about cell phone video but ultimately these are the means to an end.  Nature is beautiful but concepts of justice, fairness, freedom and equality were created by humanity.  They are what fire our passion and give us hope.  To paraphrase Mandela, these are the ideals we live for but are also prepared to die for.

Gandhi Memorial, New Delhi

Some time ago, I visited the Gandhi Memorial in New Delhi, India. Here's a picture of the Memorial but what's missing from this photo are the thousands of ordinary Indians who sixty years after Gandhi's death continue to visit the Memorial on a daily basis.  We mourn the loss of Nelson Mandela but should also join South Africans to celebrate a truly extraordinary life. Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela showed us what we could be. The ideals they shared do not die.  Let us honour them by remembering that there is still much work to be done and let's do that work!


The views expressed in this post are personal opinions only.

Ireland and the First Nations Education Act

Dingle Peninsula

A number of years ago, I went on a cycling tour of the Dingle peninsula in western Ireland.  Dingle is located just north of the famous Ring of Kerry.  It is similar to Kerry but it doesn't have the traffic so it's ideal for bicycling.

It was breathtakingly beautiful. There were high meadows of flowers and a singing landscape of brooks at Conor Pass, the highest point in Ireland. Roads that clung to the side of seaside cliffs reminded me of the Cabot Trail of Nova Scotia. And everywhere were roadside hedges meters thick from centuries of growth and covered in the shocking pink vines of wild fuchsia.  My trip ended at Killarney National Park, one of the few forests remaining in Ireland.  I could almost see the Leprechauns in the wonderful tapestry of green that is Killarney.

A clochaun in Dingle

Woven into this landscape is the presence of a long history that includes the use of stone to build many meandering kilometers of dry stone fence. Here is a picture of a stone clochaun.  It is dug somewhat into the earth and it was surprisingly spacious inside.  I appreciated it's dryness and I'm sure the Celts living there did too as it rains every day along the coast.  Dry stone masonry doesn't use any mortar to cement the stone together. Rather it all stays together because each stone is chosen to fit like a piece in a jigsaw puzzle.  This clochaun has stood for about 900 years!

Fitzgerald's Pub, Castlegregory

History dogged me throughout the trip.  I went to Ireland hoping to find some descendants of distant relatives as my father's family came from Ireland. FitzGerald isn't a very common name here but over there, it's the equivalent of Smith.  There was a FitzGerald grocery store, a FitzGerald tavern and hardware, and FitzGeralds filled the cemeteries so my search was a lost cause.

But what I lost in terms of family history, I gained in terms of historical perspective.  As I sped down a very steep hill into the town of Dingle, I passed a sign advertising the Dingle Music Festival.  Yes, it is indeed possible to speed down a long escarpment on a fully loaded bicycle and possible too to get a flat tire.  Still as luck would have it, I was in time to hear the last evening of the festival and miracle-of-miracles, able to get a ticket. The Dingle Music Festival is far better known now and if you do go, don't take a chance on last-minute tickets.

Mary Black is well-known today but back then, she was popular only with the good people of Ireland. Mary sang both upbeat songs and dirges, laments expressing grief.  I remember one that spoke about young people who boarded boats never to return. Towns of young people, never returning. Generations effectively gone and lost to the typhus of the boats before the advent of a modern postal system allowed for continuing contact. For Mary and her compatriots, all this happened yesterday.  The Irish are still mourning young people lost centuries ago.

Afterward I spoke to Mary and explained that as an Irish descendant in Canada, I didn't have this sense of history.  My father told me that boarding that boat was the smartest thing his great-grandfather had done.  Mary told me about towns that held funerals for the young people embarking on those ships and how the dirges came from those many and constant funerals.

It became clear in the course of our short conversation that Mary and I had very different views of history. Her view was very long and detailed spanning many generations.  Mine was short and mostly unknown as both my father's parents died while he was a child.  I gave a little prayer of thanks to my unknown ancestors who had taken such risks to come to Canada.

As I listened to Trustee Peter Garrow speak about the Aboriginal significance of seven generations at the Ontario Public School Boards Association board of directors meeting this weekend, I thought of Mary. The board of directors is made up of thoughtful, caring trustees from around the province and it is a privilege to work with them.  Besides, I have an audience who seems to enjoy my terrible jokes.

Peter is of the Mohawk Nation Bear Clan, lives in Cornwall, and he teaches Aboriginal history.  As Peter explains it, when he was born, his great-grandfather was still alive. Peter hopes to live to see his great-grandchild.  This is the significance of seven generations, the generations a person can hope to know in a lifetime.  Like Mary, First Nations people think in the longer term.

As I heard Peter explain the new First Nations Education Act, I was appalled.  After advocating for Aboriginal education funding in an earlier post, the phrase that sprang to mind was be careful what you wish for.  I mean how is it that the government of Canadians, Canadians who pride ourselves on a sense of fairness, can impose such a system on Aboriginal peoples without consultation?  How can it be that the government provides less funding for children's education on reserves?  How is it that our government can require a set of educational standards that has little to do with First Nations, Inuit and Metis reality? And even after issuing the historic apology for residential schools, is this yet another attempt to assimilate Aboriginal peoples?

During my cycling trip to Ireland, I realized that I have less in common with the old than the new world. I am proud of our Canadian culture with it's many Aboriginal traditions that include town hall meetings and participatory democracy.  I recognize I live on Algonquin lands and am thankful to live in this beautiful country.  At 11 am on December 10, I will be joining with many others at Victoria Island to protest the government's First Nations Education Act.  Please join me.


The views expressed in this post are personal opinions only.

P.S. Every story needs some comic relief.  The background to this is that Tour de France teams were training in Ireland.  So without further ado, here is a pseudo-limerick (the meter isn't right) written in Limerick:

There was an old woman on bike
Less often would cycle than hike
Herself out of Limerick,
Passed by every young Tim or Dick
And even a Harry on trike. 

Men, women, and the expression of love

I have so many ideas today that I could probably write three posts at once.  But if I tried, you would know that I'm crazy rather than merely suspecting it. Speaking of crazy, here's a quote from the great and irreverent George Carlin to help set the mood:

"Here's all you have to know about men and women: women are crazy; men are stupid. And the main reason women are crazy is that men are stupid."

Venus and Mars habitation aside, men and women express emotions differently.  I won't try to give some half-baked rationale for this except to say that like Carlin, I've generally observed it to be true. While it's a great source of consternation between the sexes, perhaps it's really about love and how it's expressed.

I love cartoons.  Some get to the nub of complex ideas with a few simple panels.  I've probably learned much of what I know from such fine cartoonists as GB Trudeau, Bill Watterson and Lynn Johnston.

Lynn Johnston in For Better or For Worse illustrates how women often think men express emotions.  But ladies, just because you don't hear male expression of emotion, doesn't mean it doesn't exist!

Expressing emotion is fundamentally about trust and we express trust and love in different ways.  For women, it's generally about opening up and making an effort to put feelings into words.  It's about trusting the other person, usually a woman, to listen sympathetically without rushing to judgement.  Your best girl friend is the one who is there to listen and provide encouragement, mostly uncritical encouragement.

For men, it's different.  A male friend sent me this:

"Men socialize by insulting each other, but they don't really mean it.  Women socialize by complimenting each other, and they don't really mean it either."

I couldn't find the author of this quote.  While we all know it isn't entirely true, still it has a ring of truth to it. Men show affection by razzing each other.  Remember this is coming from a woman so don't take my word for it but I think it's a comfortable way for men to show affection.  It's like saying "I love you." but without the mushy words.

Many years ago, my father and I went Christmas shopping and we stopped for a drink afterward.  Over the beer that marked a change in our relationship to that of friends, he said to me, "You know, parents try to do what's right for their kids but they don't always get it right."

Young and female though I was, I understood that while my father wasn't being emotive, he was in a very real sense apologizing.  I tried to spare his dignity and replied, "Well most kids eventually understand that parents act out of love."  And that was that.  No long ruminating.  No further explanations required.

So for the adult kids out there, take the time this holiday season to tell your dad you love him .  Just don't expect mushy words in return.


The views expressed in this post are personal opinions only.