It's unthinkable...isn't it?
The thoughts that keep me up at night...and why Canada is so precious to me
The orange bully’s jerking of the Canadian trade leash has made our longtime allies and neighbors up north furious.
Canadians are angry and hurt—though not surprised, having dealt with the bully’s capricious cruelty during his last term.
Although the tendency is to want to appease and preserve longstanding ties, there is only so far Canadians will be pushed before they circle their wagons and begin to shun the aggressor. Imagine, it’s only taken three weeks for DJT to reach that tipping point.
My history in Canada began in another tumultuous time in American history—2004, when my parents, upset about the racist bigotry and abuses of power that led to the American invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, decided to buy property in Canada.
As a result, I have spent a lot of time in Canada during the last 20 years, and I happened to be there in March 2020, when the border was closed to prevent the spread of Covid.
I stayed north of the border for the next 18 months, working remotely, and in that time I decided to apply for Canadian residency. I never again wanted to have the feeling of the Canadian border being closed to me.
It took more than four years, and a lot of rigamarole, but late last year my application was finally approved. I “landed” in Canada as a permanent resident the week after the U.S. election.
So now, when I think about what is happening in the US-Canadian relationship, I see with both eyes—as a lifelong American citizen who often dissented from the actions of the US government, and as a new Canadian resident, admiring my adopted country and wanting to make a positive contribution.
I have been trying to convey to Canadians, here and on social media, that the GOP has a very fragile, slender mandate. Not all Americans should be tarred with the same brush!
The American states have been brutally gerrymandered; the electoral college system is fundamentally unfair when it comes to accurately representing population; so many people have been poorly educated and brainwashed by propaganda.
America is a very unhealthy society, literally as well as figuratively: witness the high rates of suicide, drug abuse, domestic violence, school shootings, and chronic pain and disease.
It’s a polarized, distrustful society, and getting more so every day.
And the people in charge now are the worst kind of gangsters—racist, evangelist, misogynist, brutal. To say that they don’t handle disagreement well is a laughable understatement. Any pushback and they reach for the cement shoes.
Given this sorry state of affairs, I think it’s a good idea for Canada to pull back and reduce its interdependence on the US, looking to other, saner partnerships.
The only danger to this strategy is the possibility that the criminals now in charge in Washington DC could consider some kind of military action to take what they want from Canada.
No doubt Greenland, Panama and Mexico are worried about this too.
It’s a terrifying idea, the specter of the US military being used against our allies.
It’s unthinkable.
And yet here I am, thinking about it.
America was founded on beautiful ideals of justice, equality and freedom from tyranny—ideals which it took many more decades and a civil war to even begin to live up to.
Now the structures created in our founding are being tested as never before.
Will the Constitution and the rule of law be enough to stop the lawless president from imposing his imperial will on the people?
Will the Republican-controlled Congress rubber-stamp criminal activity, such as the invasion of peaceful allies or the use of American troops against Americans?
Will the military obey such commands?
Things could get very nasty in the USA. Maybe not quite as bad as Canadian author Margaret Atwood foresaw in The Handmaid’s Tale, but pretty bad.
I am beyond grateful that I can now claim Canada as my home, and I have every intention of becoming a citizen there as soon as possible.
But my heart is sad and heavy for what is happening to the country of my birth.
Americans, it is too soon to give up. We don’t have to become a gray gulag country, a nation of fear and repression for the poor, lawlessness and greed for the rich.
If ever there was a time for Americans of conscience to raise our voices in dissent from what is being done in our name—the time is now.
See you at the next protest! And in the meantime, let’s keep writing to right the world.
Yours in the eye of the storm,
Jennifer
Starting this month!
Come write and speak your truth with me in this powerful four-session Bioneers Learning online class!
In this hands-on class hosted by Bioneers Learning, we’ll look deeply at some of the major social and environmental issues of our time and consider how outstanding leaders have used creative expression to make a difference.
Inspired by these models, you’ll work on expressing your own ideas with confidence, clarity, and eloquence, in both writing and public speaking, coming away with a portfolio of writing, a recorded talk, and a circle of kindred spirits cheering you on.
Four Fridays, Feb. 28 - March 21, 2025, live online from 12 - 1:30 pm with recordings available.
To write and speak our truths, we have to recharge our creative fuel cells, right?
I’m leading three in-person retreats this spring, designed to help you ground, center and reconnect to your own creative spirit.
Read on for details, and come join me!
Meet me in Petaluma, California on March 30 for a daylong writing retreat!
Come on retreat with me and Birth Your Truest Story co-host Audrey Kalman along the Petaluma River in northern California. We'll write, share, grab lunch at a neighborhood cafe, and amble to the river for inspiration. Join us to:
Trace your inspiration back to its source
Follow the twists and turns of your creative flow state
Learn to ride the rapids of your creative life and float gently through the quiet stretches
Write together and share your work
Savor the group energy of our Birth Your Truest Story creative community
March 30, 2025. Early registration ($139) runs through February 28.
Meet me in Rowe, Massachusetts for a weekend retreat in the beautiful month of May!
Come on retreat with me in the budding springtime setting of Rowe, Massachusetts, where we’ll write to explore our deep connections with our Mother Earth, Gaia, as well as how the potent theme of mothering and nurturing has shown up in our lives.
Rowe is a magical retreat center nestled in the northern Berkshire mountains, with trails through mature forests bordering a tranquil lake. It’s rustic in a way that encourages communion with the land and camaraderie with the kindred spirits in our circle.
May 9 - 11, 2025. Sliding scale tuition and a variety of accommodations on site. I can’t wait to share this special experience with you!
Come Riding & Writing in Iceland with me in June!
Riding & Writing in Iceland!
June 2 - 8, 2025
The creative tonic of Iceland has to be experienced to be understood.
Come experience the body, mind and spirit glow that comes from Riding & Writing in good company in a beautiful place, warmly hosted by our friends Gudmar and Christina at Hestaland.
Click here to find out more and see beautiful photos from my past Riding & Writing trips to Iceland.
Friends, it’s my pleasure and my passion to support you as we stretch towards living our lives creatively and to the fullest.
The motto of my author consulting business is “Writing to Right the World,” and the motto of my book publishing business, Green Fire Press, is “Books that Make the World Better.”
If these intentions resonate with you and you are working on a book, or have one in mind, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
Supporting creative people bring their work more strongly out into the world is one way I try to make the world better.
