It's Monday morning early, and such a lovely one too. Makes a person feel good to be alive. When we hear the devastation that the rest of the world is going through, I feel so fortunate to live where we do. These terrible earthquakes that are shaking our world with such terrible devastation we realized how very fragile our world really is. This last quake in Japan will no doubt effect the world including Canada. As the crow flies we are very close. We go through life thinking this can't happen to us, but no doubt people in Japan were thinking the same thing. Are we prepared? This is a tough question.

I am once more a great grandpa and I feel so proud. Jo would have felt the same way, yes a great grandmother. Zackery Edison Neave came into the world March 9. His parents Amy and Edward are so happy that all went well. This all happened in the Prince George Hospital. A little brother for Jacob and Parker. With the hospital situation such as it is it put a heavy burden on Amy and Edward with having to go to Prince George. They are not the only ones who have had this inconvenience of having to leave their home town for a birth. This cost them five trips to Prince George hospital every trip costing about $350 per trip with a night stay over in a motel plus meals and fuel.

This whole procedure could have been handled in our own hospital as it was years ago, without the inconvenience of having to go so far away. Let's hope that in the near future we will once more have our own operating room staffed with capable doctors. The Lakes District deserves this as it encompasses a huge area, too big to be left out.

Last week Mark Neave noticed a pack of five wolves plus a loner start across the lake just east of the Ingram's property. Also two more were seen further down the lake. I heard there has been quite a slaughter out on the ice. The deer don't stand a chance once the wolves get them out on the ice. Sad as it seems they have to eat too, I guess it's what's called nature's way.  I have heard the lone wolf is a kind of a scout and locates the game for the pack.

There are lots of coyotes around too as they I'll no doubt have a number of deer kills to their credit. Every night we can heard howling very close by.

Last night I attended the Lakes District Health care public forum, held in the Island Gospel Church auditorium. It was a full house. Many questions were asked and many were answered. The present hospital situation is in the interest of us all as you could tell by the feelings of everyone at this meeting. This meeting will no doubt be written up in full by our reporter in our local paper. On the meeting agenda there was a quote, no doubt most everyone read it but I will pass it on to any who were not at the meeting. This was a quote by 'Roy Romanow, former Premier of Saskatchewan in his 2002 paper on health care. There is an adverse law in operation. People in rural communities have poorer health status and have more difficult accessing health care services than people in urban centers.' He has hit the nail on the head very much so especially the situation we are now facing.

I think we are all looking forward to spring. It's been a long winter and these warmer days just make us all feel better. As per usual the time change always catches up to us. Our house is full of clocks, Jo loved her clocks. When the clock went back last fall there was one of her clocks that is hard to change so that one clock that was on the daylight saving already. It was easier to leave it than the bother to set it back.

In our last paper there is a letter from Audrey Read, with headlines and I quote "Fraser Lake will be losing a good Doctor". She has written this letter right from her heart as she is no doubt a concerned mother. We need doctors so badly, yet this is going to happen. Then we also see an article headline again. Doctors contract ends. The reason they said is technically they don't need a reason. This whole thing seems to me like a dictatorship that is sneaking into our system and as far as I can see it's also unconstitutional for want of a better world. Our whole community should take this up even if it's Fraser Lake problem, it's also ours. We are neighbours.

Any of my remarks have no reflection on either this paper or my family they are mine alone.

Every once in a while I like to look back on my life as a kid. Now so long ago but still as fresh as ever. Our school life was so different than today. I grew up in Saskatchewan along the Eye Creek. School days, school days dear old golden rule days but our days were full. We always started out our school day with our National Anthem, Oh Canada or The Maple Leaf Forever. We all had to stand at attention, hats off and we would sing our little hearts out. Then one of the bigger boys would put up the flag. Then we had the Lords Prayer and a short bible reading. This did not hurt us one little bit, in fact it gave us respect and this has stayed with me all my life and I have passed this on to my family. We held our teachers with the utmost respect, always sir or mister and the lady teachers were miss or mrs. The strap used quite often and it did us god, discipline never hurt anyone. My dad used to say get a strapping at school you get one when you get home. I got my share but I sure never told him even if my hands were blistered, and I had to miln my share of the milk cows by hand. Our teachers were very strict during school hours they would come out and play ball with us, but once in the school room it was different.

A little story.

A policeman was making his rounds, and he noticed an elderly man crying on a park bench. The officer sat down beside him and asked what was the trouble and if he could help. "I'm 90 years old" the gentleman said " I'm married to a young lady of 23, she is a wonderful wife, caring, kind, a good cook, and housekeeper." "She is full of fun and a good companion." The officer said "Why the tears you are one lucky man." The old man said "I don't remember where I live."

Thought for the day.

There are two kinds of people. those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group, there is less competition. How true. Take care, have a safe week and always remember God loves you and so do I.