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This week's editorial

Editor Joan Ritchie's editorial from this week's issue of The Moose Jaw Express
Editorial_JoanRitchie
Editorial by editor Joan Ritchie

Saskatchewan people have a lot of heart and endurance, something that all of us need at this time of the year, especially in the continuous conundrum of COVID.  

The weather’s cold, it’s dark when we get up and it’s dark when we go home at the end of the day; all we hear about are the number of COVID cases increasing across the country, while many social outings are again regulated by restrictions so individuals are encouraged to stay home with just their immediate household.

The list of don’ts far outweighs the list of do’s leading us down a pathway to the blues. This too shall pass.  

Now is the time to get a little perspective…  

In all that is negative and dark, we as Saskatchewanians are resilient and have the potential to see the possibility of a silver-lining at the edge of the dark clouds. It’s there…

I saw a clip recently of actor Michael J. Fox that encouraged me to encourage you to “buck-up” and change your focus. Most probably know that he has lived with Parkinson's disease since his diagnosis in 1991. Through the struggles of this disease he has pushed through a public career and made it work; his life has flourished despite the circumstances, for the most part anyways. He has even admitted that living with Parkinson's disease has dragged him down on occasion but this one nugget of inspiration he shared is worth some consideration.    

He was asked how he managed to push through the emotionally draining hard times enduring this debilitating disease; he said, “Gratitude with feed your optimism.”

It takes a big person on the inside to see the cup half-full when it’s much easier to focus on a cup half-empty. 

No matter how hard we feel we have it now in our bubbles, there is much to be thankful for. Many others have it much worse than we do with huge obstacles to overcome, as well as surviving the pandemic.  

Even in things we take for granted it is possible to be thankful.  

In a day, there is both daylight and dark. We can be thankful for the daytime sunshine and also for the night, a time to lay our heads to rest and rejuvenate our bodies.    

For tho’ it is cold outside, we can be thankful for the warmth indoors.   

Some of us may be alone but we don’t have to be lonely; we can be thankful for the people around us even if they aren’t in our presence, with 20th century technology:  texting, FaceTime, and even an old fashioned phone call.  

Even if finances are tough and it’s hard to put bread on the table, there are places to go where people provide sustenance: Riverside Mission, Hunger in Moose Jaw, Salvation Army, some churches in Moose Jaw, and there are many others who do care enough to feed the hungry. 

The list could go on and on if we would just focus a little more on being grateful.    

It is in being grateful for what we have that will help build our perspective to becoming more optimistic in these tough times.  Chin up!  

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.  

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