Does life have to hurt this much?

I've known Damien (not his real name) for a couple of years now. I first met him on a sunny August morning at Table Time, the almost weekly outreach that Pastor Quinn and I are able to offer thanks to the donations that Inner City Pastoral Ministry receives from supporters who care about our homeless community members. 

On that particular Tuesday morning, Damien crossed the road to say hello to us. He wished us an enthusiastic "Happy Feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God!" and we had a little chat about his connection to the Ukrainian Orthodox church before he started talking philosophy with Quinn. I soon realized that Quinn and Damien had engaged in several such conversations in the past. 

In subsequent encounters, Damien struck me as a rather brilliant renaissance man, well-read and well-educated on many topics, and there was nothing he loved more than sharing what he was learning. Usually, he was coming or going from the library when we saw him. I often wondered why he didn't have a home, but whenever Quinn asked him about getting into housing, he said he was content where he was living (at Hope Mission's men's shelter, though his beliefs don't exactly fit with Hope's evangelical bent).

It has been so cold in February that there were a few Table Times that Quinn and I missed. When it's -30 with a -40 windchill, there's no point standing on the corner near Bissell Centre to hand out clothing, snacks, or toiletries because homeless people are holed up trying to stay warm in the library, malls, LRT stations or tarp/tent shelters -- wherever it's warm and bylaw officers are scarce. 

Yesterday, we learned from Bissell West staff that sometime in the recent weeks of extreme cold, Damien experienced frostbite so severe that all his fingers and one thumb had to be amputated. And my heart immediately broke for this sweet fellow who has no real home, and now, a serious disability that could have been prevented. How will he hold his beloved books and turn their pages?

What makes Damien's story even harder to bear is that the Bissell Centre West community space, which, for many years, has held a drop-in for people who are homeless and precariously-housed, is being closed on March 31st. City and province are no longer willing to support its essential services. 

Make no mistake, the community space is essential. It offers warmth on cold days, a place to get out of the blazing sun on hot days, not to mention washrooms, showers, laundry facilities, nurses who offer first aid, a clothing closet, an Indigenous cultural space, coffee, snacks, and a few other amenities that most of us who live in comfort take for granted. 

Perhaps more important than all those things, however, the community space offers a place where people can connect with their friends, and where they can receive help from staff members who have the right blend of humour and heart to really care for community members who come in. The Bissell staff I know are exceptionally kind people who go far beyond their job descriptions. I suspect that for them, working in the drop-in is a vocation more than a job. They worry when regulars don't show up. 

And regulars are people just like you and me except their lives have unraveled through no fault of their own -- people suffering from deep poverty often complicated by mental health issues, physical and/or mental disabilities, intergenerational trauma, addictions, and other challenges. Every individual has a heartbreaking story, and many, like Damien, don't talk about it.

It hurts that when the Community Space closes on March 31st, there is one less place for homeless sisters and brothers to safely gather and connect. Their supports are consistently being eroded by governments that would rather pretend they don't exist, or who want to force them all into detox facilities before they have the appropriate supports to be psychologically ready for substance-free living. The Public Spaces bylaws passed by Edmonton City Council this week will make life even more difficult for them. And I'll be surprised if people who are homeless are even mentioned in tomorrow's provincial budget.

Their supports are consistently being eroded. Yes, I'm saying it again.

And nobody is stepping up to say, "This is Wrong!"

Yesterday I sat on my back steps and sobbed for Damien and his stubs of hands, and tears also ran down my cheeks for the wonderful Bissell staff members whose hearts are completely broken -- and who are about to be laid off -- but who are still talking about a March memorial service for people who have died on our streets in the last four months. The staff know and care for the community one-on-one and don't want lives to end unremembered. 

My tears have dried up long enough to write this post, but I am left with a burning anger that chokes my throat and stings my eyes. 

That's nothing compared to Damien's pain from losing all his fingers and a thumb in the past weeks.

Does life have to hurt this much in a wealthy city and province like ours?

It shouldn't. That's why I'm telling you, friends, about what's going on. The Bissell staff's hands are tied by policies preventing them from speaking out. 

But mine aren't.

Of course, my writing isn't enough unless it motivates good people like you to do something. At the bottom of this post are the email addresses and phone numbers of the Alberta Premier and various ministers who should have a stake in caring for ALL Albertans, as well as Edmonton's city councilors and mayor, who need to be reminded to spend public money on care for the homeless rather than ineffective police and cleanup crews. I've put all this information together in one place to make contacting officials easier. 

Please -- send emails demanding that the Bissell Centre West Community Space be kept open and well-staffed, and that services for homeless people be expanded rather than cut, copying your message to your own MLA, too. If you have a few extra minutes, it would be great to follow up your email with a phone call. And if you would be so kind as to share this post among your own friends and family so that they can also help, you'd be adding numbers to these efforts. We all know there is strength in numbers.

If you live elsewhere, please consider writing and calling your own politicians demanding an increase in services for people who are homeless in your area, as well as supportive and affordable housing for all.

Life doesn't have to hurt this much. 

Not if we all work together for positive change. 

* * * * * * *

With many thanks to Jim Gurnett for his helpful words.

Provincial contacts:

premier@gov.ab.ca (Danielle Smith, Premier of Alberta) (780) 427-2251

SCSS.Minister@gov.ab.ca (Jason Nixon, Seniors and Community Services) (780) 643-6210

PSES.Minister@gov.ab.ca (Mike Ellis, Public Safety and Emergency Services) (780) 415-1550

MHA.Minister@gov.ab.ca (Dan Williams, Mental Health and Addiction) (780) 427-0165

Health.Minister@gov.ab.ca (Adriana LaGrange) (780) 427-7164

Minister.MunicipalAffairs@gov.ab.ca (Rick McIver) (780) 427-3744

IR.MinisterOffice@gov.ab.ca (Rick Wilson, Indigenous Relations) (780) 422-4144

City of Edmonton contacts:

aaron.paquette@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8138

andrew.knack@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8122

anne.stevenson@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8333

ashley.salvador@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8140

erin.rutherford@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8136

jennifer.rice@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8132

jo-anne.wright@edmonton.ca  (780) 496-8148

karen.principe@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8128

keren.tang@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8142

michael.janz@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8146

sarah.hamilton@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8120

tim.cartmell@edmonton.ca (780) 496-8130

amarjeet.sohi@edmonton.ca (No phone number that I could find)

Monday Music Appreciation #51: Those Rebellious Elevators

There's been lots of great symphonic music at the Winspear Centre for Music these last weeks, so much so that I'm finding it hard to choose just one video to share. So I'm taking a different tack this Monday Music Appreciation Day, sharing the music of my own kids.

Christina and Landon co-wrote a fun piece of music some time ago, and a few years later, Christina got a bunch of friends and family to contribute toward recording studio time as a birthday gift for Landon. They call themselves The Rebellious Elevators (due to living in a high rise on the 14th floor at the time the song was written). Their recording of With You finally came out on Christmas Day, and I've been meaning to share it here ever since. The problem is that I'm not sure how to share a piece from Spotify so that it's accessible, except to publish the link.

If you'd like to hear With You, click here... and I hope something happens! If not, blame your low tech moodler! If you don't already have access to Spotify, it might ask you to sign up for a free account (which is what I have). And if you'd like to buy the track to support local talent, that would be great.

What I really love about this tune is how the kids invited so many family and friends to contribute their talents. There's a list of all the people who helped make this music on the site, and it was fun for me to be part of it and sing the low harmony on the refrain. It's been years since I've been to a recording studio, and wow, have things evolved thanks to computers. Have a listen and see what you think!

Hope Stoves to warm cold people

It's bloody cold out there these days. And there are far too many people without homes. Yes, some of them stay in shelters for the homeless, but during the daytime, they are forced out to wander the streets looking for warm places to spend their time. Imagine for a moment what that would be like.

There are also a lot of people who refuse to stay in homeless shelters. On Sunday morning when I went down to Inner City Pastoral Ministry, there were a few folks outside the Bissell Centre trying to stay warm under tarps and blankets because they don't feel safe in the shelters even if they are warmer spaces. They were the first to come in when we opened our doors. That they'd rather sleep outside and risk frostbite says a lot about the shelter system. (I've seen some pretty ugly frostbite this winter...)

So a few friends gathered on February 9th to make "Hope Stoves." Basically, they are unused, empty paint cans that have air holes in the top half and are half-filled with wax and five wicks. They are safer than propane burners or other flammable materials, but light those wicks and they warm the can enough that you can boil water on it, and if it gets kicked over, it just goes out.

The idea originated with Mike Hay, a BC Contractor who likes to keep warm while camping, and who wants those living rough to be able to stay warm too. Each stove burns for about 12 hours. They can boil water. And they can carry messages of hope, besides.

Here's Mike and his Hope Stove tutorial (click here, moodlings subscribers), in case you want to offer a simple form of help to any folks who might be living rough in your neighbourhood...

Monday Music Appreciation #50: Laudate Dominum

Wow, we're up to 50 music appreciation moodlings! And I've chosen this particular piece because we had such a great time singing/praying it last night at our local ecumenical evening prayer.

If you're a regular moodlings follower, you'll know that for the past 14 years or more, I've been organizing an almost monthly prayer evening because of my love for the music of Taizé and the Taizé community's very simple style of prayer. Silence, scripture and song, with no preaching, just a chance to let God's voice ring in our hearts. And last night's Prayer for the Marginalized was extra special somehow... 

When I arrived to set up at the church that was hosting us, the pastor told me that the furnace wasn't heating the church sanctuary, so we'd have our prayer in the basement where it was warmer. So we rearranged some chairs and tables and set up in a low-ceilinged hall, and people filed down to the basement to pray with us. Somehow, I had no matches to light our candles, but God provided a friend with a lighter last minute!

It was a cozy and intimate prayer space, and because we were closer together, the sound was incredible, as was the silence for meditation. There were many heartfelt prayers for all those being marginalized in our society and world, and I felt a very strong sense of community in praying with the people who came, many of whom are familiar faces from different churches in our area and beyond.

We ended the evening with the chant below, and it filled me with so much joy that I couldn't stop myself from singing the Alleluia descant with Mackenzie, who certainly didn't need my help! The musicians in our little Taizé group have been playing together long enough that they seem to intuit exactly what should happen next. When we got to the last ostinato of Laudate Dominum, Mackenzie glanced over at me, we dropped volume together, then ended the last half at full volume and with big smiles. Such a rush!

If you live in our city, and have yet to join us for our evenings of Ecumenical Prayer, our Lenten Prayer will be held at Spirit of Hope United Church (7909 83 Ave) on March 16 at 7 p.m. Bring friends and neighbours if you like!

The version of Laudate Dominum I am sharing today is in French, but it has gorgeous nature scenes and amazing French descants that outstrip the English ones we have by miles, praising God's greatness for restoring us to life, saving our feet from stumbling, and so many other good things you can say when praising God!

Because I can't send this video via the mailchimp program (sorry, email subscribers), here is the link to it on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAgT4bPJ5W4

But if you are looking directly on www.simplemoodlings.blogspot.com, you should be able to see it below. Have a wonderful week and stay warm!

Monday Music Appreciation #49: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor by Camille Saint-Saëns

It's been a while since I've worked a shift at the Winspear, and I'm somewhat grateful for that fact because I've had my hands full learning the ropes for being associate pastor at Inner City Pastoral Ministry. I didn't pull any usher shifts for January, but February is definitely busier, and that's okay because I've been through all my other work responsibilities at least once and feel like I have my feet under me once again -- so that I'm able to give full attention to both roles when I'm in them.

On Friday night, for my first 2025 Winspear shift, Sara Davis Buechner was guest pianist for a one-hour "Piano and Prosecco" pairings concert ("Pairings" are designed to give a taste of symphonic music and a lovely beverage or treat to all who come to the concert hall, geared especially toward new, younger guests). So I had the pleasure of taking tickets at the door, and giving every attendee a second ticket for a beverage from the bar or a treat from the coffee and desserts kiosk. It's a lovely way for people who have never attended a symphony to try one on for size.

And Friday's concert was a treat in itself. The first half was Schubert's Symphony No. 6 in C Major, and the second half, Saint-Saëns' Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, played by the always amazing Sara Davis-Buechner. It's standing ovation material when she comes to play with the ESO every single time.

Saint-Saëns' symphony is an incredible piece of music, and I wish I could show you Sara's dramatic rendering of it. But in the video below, Ann Liu does a beautiful job, making me wish I'd stuck with my piano lessons all those years ago. It must be such a thrill to make music like this. See what you think!

Monday Music Appreciation #48: This Joy

I am appreciating so much in my life these days, including good music. And here's a great tune that I love to dance around my kitchen to, written by Shirley Caesar and sung by the Resistance Revival Chorus at the height of the pandemic. It's hard not to clap and move to it, and it's easy to catch on and sing along. See what you think! (And don't miss the little animated message at the end!)