I have some grave concerns for civilization after events brought to my attention this week, and combined with some amazing experiences, I can feel the consequences of a roller-coaster of emotions as we slide into the weekend. Like the old adage in education where feedback should be wrapped in a gift of 3 fantastics and 1 work-on, this week featured (1) amazing rides, (2) rekindling a passion, and (3) reacquainting with some dear friends, but the warm-fuzzies were certainly overshadowed by yet another mass shooting tragedy in the US.
Always start with the good stuff, says I.
I treated myself to some pretty amazing rides this past few days, fuelled by Ma Nature's gift of sunny skies and warmer temperatures, resulting in a great feeling of peace and contentment. My travels included a buddy ride to the west of Guelph with my old friend Dave Byers, a connection made back in the days when I coached at Olympia Sports Camps, riding the G2G (Guelph to Goderich) Trail from the hamlet of Millbank to Elora, a tasty treat at the Elora Brewing Company ... highly recommended ... and back. On a different day, I headed in the opposite direction for solo ride from Guelph to Erin, a coffee and treat from Erin's Tin Roof Cafe, and back. I even included a trip north from Guelph to Fergus to Elora and back. I count my lucky stars that I married well because Joyce rarely takes issue with me being gone for hours at a time as I traverse the gravel roads and trails of the community.
I also succeeded in combining some supply work with a passion that was pushed to the back burner during this pandemic when I hauled out and dusted off my camera bag to prowl the touchlines of Barrie North, happily capturing the Vikings rugby program as they put the hard work tasked by their coaches into play in a high school season match. Kudos to Mike Alcombrack, Burke Erwin, Adam Claus, Rich Jessome, and Alex Griffin for taking on the gargantuan task of running the Sr Boys, Jr Boys, and Varsity Girls programs as a management team ... and when I say running, I also meaning winning!
I adore taking photos of high school sports!
At the risk of sounding like an old Fuddy-Duddy, the advancements in camera technology has provided athletes with opportunities that simply didn't exist back in my playing days. I don't own a top-of-the-line model, but my equipment certainly satisfies the demands of capturing the blood and tears of high school endeavours, while on-line connections make sharing the fruits of that labour a snap. While my mates and I had to wait months after purchasing a Yearbook before greedily devouring it's pages to spy the shots captured from the sidelines, I was recently able to gift North's players and coaches with over 700 decent shots (if I do say so myself) that are easily shared amongst the team within 72 hours of the event, and that's after some post-production tweaking!
It's often been remarked that some sport communities are small places. Rugby is certainly at the top of the list as I'm oft reminded when I attend a variety of games from the semi-professional Toronto Arrows, to the local Barrie Rugby Club, or the amazing pitch behind Barrie North Collegiate, and this past week was no different as the glorious weather and the allure of high school sports back in play following the string of pandemic powered shut downs lured substantial crowds of supporters to the touchlines. Among attendees recently were guys that left a huge impression on me as we shared time at the now defunct Barrie Central. Ron Andrews and Brad Chestnut came to support the efforts of Jay Malandrino as he refereed the match between Barrie North and the Sam Loucks coached Bear Creek. Even though I was pretty busy behind the lens, time to rekindle the flame with these guys is always possible, resulting in huge smiles, thunderous laughter, and a few emotionally charged hugs.
Then the news of Uvalde, Texas hit the news, the coaster reached the top of the peak, and the looming descent sent pangs of rage straight into my soul.
Another distraught, demented American gun owner had taken the lives of his countrymen, many of which were children, before consequently losing his own young life in the name of some twisted revenge spawned deep in the recesses of his psyche. As the angst and frustration was captured in the reports over this latest in what seems like a never ending string of tragedies, renewed calls for changes to America's gun registration laws were sent heavenward with upturned palms in sheer frustration that more children's lives had been stolen. Social Media's pages were soon filled with messages, rants, graphics and links condemning America's politicians who had chosen power and money over lives, sitting on their collective hands instead of risking the steady flow of financial support from the NRA.
One resource brought to my attention was an MSN article that listed the 248 mass shootings of 2022. According to the article, "Mass shootings are incidents involving several victims of firearm-related violence. There is no universally accepted criteria for what qualifies as a mass shooting, but many US organizations, such as the non-profit Gun Violence Archive and the Congressional Research Service, define it as an incident in which four or more people, excluding the perpetrator, are shot at one location at roughly the same time. By this metric, there have been 248 mass shootings in the US so far in 2022, killing more than 250 people." CLICK for the article.
Let that sink in, folks ... TWO HUNDRED AND FORTY-EIGHT!
In the first 5 months of 2022!
Granted that the USA leads the globe in tragedies of this type, the atrocities of the Russia-Ukraine war only serve to fuel the planet's despondence as we collectively sink into a Saddam-Gomorrah like state, bewilderment and frustration filling our consciousness. We humans seem to have a propensity for destroying each other with alarming ease and thoroughness. The reasons behind it all are complex, varied and extensive, but I don't mind admitting that I long for a day when the news reports are ripe with stories of good will, charity and kindness.
The hope that I cling to fits nicely into my metaphorical roller-coaster and it's peaks, valleys, g-force turns, and cacophony of emotions.
Whew! Maybe next week will take it easy on me.
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