I am really close to reaching Fernie, should be this week. Have not yet picked out my next goal. Going to try something not too far from Fernie as this last bit seemed to take forever. My number of steps has increased since wearing my fit bit on my ankle.
Checked my calendar and there are a few special days during October.
Yom Kippur, also known as the Day of Atonement is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It begins Tuesday, October 8 at sunset and ends at nightfall Wednesday October 9. The theme is atonement and repentance.
Jews traditionally observe this holy day with an approximate 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayers. Thanksgiving this year in Canada is October 14, a national holiday actually celebrated on various dates in Canada, the U.S. and some of the Caribbean Islands and Liberia.Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan.
LAST WEEK: Repair Cafe helps recycle, reduce anad reuse
Thanksgiving began as a day of giving thanks and sacrifice for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. It has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions and has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well.
And then, of course, we have Halloween October 31. It originates from ancient Celtic harvest festivals which may have had pagan roots. Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, costumes, carved pumpkins and even playing pranks. In some countries Christian religious observances include attending church services, lighting candles on the graves of the dead with some Christians historically abstaining from meat, traditionally eating certain vegetarian foods such as apples, potato pancakes and soul cakes.
MORE VIEW FROM THE PORCH: Improvements completed on Willovale Marsh trail
Reminders that bazaar season is starting. The Glenwood Women’s Institute will be holding their bazaar October 26 from noon to 3 p.m. at the Glenwood (Driftwood) Hall. We have a great lineup of Vendors this year and our lunch is always satisfying.
Other bazaars will be lining up; always a great way to see friends you haven’t seen in a while and to find special gifts for under the tree.
To commemorate Canadian Library Month, (October) the British Columbia Library Association (BCLA) presents “A Celebration of BC Libraries.” A slideshow demonstrating the multiplicity of our libraries, our unique locations and our connections to our communities. The Smithers Library is the first slide in the slideshow.
One more reminder: The Friends of the Library will be hosting their annual Booksale, November 15 and 16 at the Legion 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the 15th and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Saturday. Check your bookcases, your collections – all donations are gratefully accepted, now is the time to declutter/downsize (although I do not define books as “clutter”). Drop your donations off at the library or call 250-847-3043 to request a pickup.
Closing with: News media talks about different countries showing off their strengths, “sword rattling” a term that means “to threaten conflict or combat.” This term has come to be used politically for factions or nations who are taking actions or directly threatening war. World War II started in 1939 and that war took the lives of 70 to 85 million people.
Please, let’s not go there.
gradoir@citywest.ca
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