September 2007
Monthly Archive
Goodbye Mr. Danby
Posted by kmwithsarah on 24 Sep 2007 | Tagged as: All that other stuff, Useful Information
€œThe arts are just as important as math and science in education, and just as important as any other endeavour in our lives. Art is a necessity. Art is an absolutely essential part of our enlightenment process. We cannot, as a species, as a civilized society, regard ourselves as being enlightened without the arts.€
Canadian Artist Ken Danby, passed away Sunday, September 22, 2007
Thank you for your passionate support of arts education, and the wonderful Canadian art you gave us. You will be missed.
Mixed Blessings, Rave Reviews
Posted by kmwithsarah on 12 Sep 2007 | Tagged as: Family, Julia, Useful Information
CBC Radio is running a wonderful 4 part radio documentary series entitled Mixed Blessings that explores the identity and culture of mixed-race Canadians. Its a facinating portrait of growing up with a face that doesn’t meet the expectations of others and a fluid sense of personal identity.
My daughter Julia has a complicated pedigree of her own (half Chinese, half Canadian of English/Irish/Scottish decent, born in Japan). Xiaotian and I have worked hard to help her feel comfortable with who she is, to be able to connect with both of her cultures, to understand some of what Japan means to us, and to ensure she is bilingual. So far, it seems to be working but its nice to hear the voices of people who have lived the experience themselves. And that its becoming, in Canada at least, a major trend and, dare I say it, the new normal in a lot of urban areas.
Mixed Blessings is available for download or as a streamed audio here. There is also a fantastic photo gallery of some of the contributors to the series. Go get it now. You will be glad you did.