Homeward Bound..

"Truckin', I'm a goin' home. Whoa whoa baby, back where I belong,
Back home, sit down and patch my bones, and get back truckin' on.

Hey now, get back truckin' home."

-Grateful Dead

The past couple of days have been a series of goodbyes and goodbye celebrations. We hosted our photo exhibition on Sunday, and it went far better than I had expected. Many of our host families, new friends, work supervisors, were in attendance. Good atmosphere within the art gallery.

Well, this is it, my last day in Prince Albert, my last day with Josue, my last day as a member of Canada World Youth. I can hardly believe that it has been 6 months since I made that first blog post in the lobby of our hotel. Six months!

I know it's going to be heartbreaking to say goodbye to all of my new friends here, but we all knew it would come to an end at this point, so no surprises. Tomorrow we head out to Saskatoon at 6:30 in the morning. The Canadians are dropped off at the hotel for our re-integration sessions, and the Nicaraguans continue on to the airport without us.

I expect that the first couple of days after I come back will be very, very difficult. I'll probably write one last post upon my arrival in Arden as a reflection of sorts. This will be my final post within the program.

I want to thank everyone who diligently read this blog for the past 6 months. I thoroughly enjoyed writing them, and I hope you enjoyed reading them (I fully intend on printing them off as a keepsake). See you all soon!

Wrapping Up...

Things have been slow as we come to the end of our program, hence the absence of blog posts.

This coming week will be our last week of work, and our last full week of the program. We all recently found out the logistics of our return home. Luckily, I'll be flying into Ottawa (as opposed to Toronto) on March 5th, around midday. So excited! I can't wait to reunite with family and friends, and intend to spend all of March trekking around SE Ontario doing so.

I'll post at least one more time before I leave Prince Albert. Sorry that I don't have any real updates!

A Fantastic Evening at Amy's..

So, tonight was our big night. 'Evening at Amy's', the culmination of all our hard work.

It went off better than I could have imagined. Firstly, we sold all of our tickets. I believe that we ended up selling 4 over our 50 ticket limit, at 12$ a piece. That's $648, JUST ON TICKETS!!!!

We collected a total of 15 lots to auction off, many of them being a combined package of several donated items. All of our lots were bid on throughout the night, some collecting more than 3x the amount of our starting bids.

As far as entertainment and food were concerned, I couldn't have asked for more. Amy first served a chutney and cracker dish, making both coffee and drinks from the bar available. The cheesecake followed an hour after the event had begun, and it was well worth the wait. Delicious!

The band was fantastic, playing a wide array of Jazz pieces, some of which I recognized. Shayne played guitar and sang during the band's break and gave a great performance, as usual. The atmosphere was perfect.

I'm not one for speeches, so when the time came to choose who would give introductions, closing statements, thanks, etc.; I chose to give the auction details. I get nervous when speaking to a large group of people (as I'm sure everyone does who is unaccustomed to doing so), and was sure that I mumbled and bumbled my way through the entire thing. After everyone started to disperse, a lady came up to me and said, "I just wanted to tell you that you have a wonderful demeanor and way of conducting yourself. Don't ever lose that". What a nice thing to say to a person. Needless to say, that alone made my night.

I just got back a couple of minutes ago, and I'm on cloud 9.

First Nations Sweat Ceremony...

Today started off as a regular day of work at the Red Cross. We were working on our receipting and paperwork when Janice suggested that Josue accompany her to Pelican Narrows, which is a First Nations community about 4 hours north of Prince Albert. Josue was overjoyed at the prospect of a trip up north, and off they went.

I continued with my regular work schedule. At around 12:00 one of Shannon's ex-coworkers from her time at police station showed up for a lunch date. It also so happens that she is on of the First Nation Elders within the Prince Albert community. We had a long conversation about the program, some past hosting experiences she has had, and about Canada in general. When it came time for her to leave she extended an invitation to attend one of their sweat ceremonies, which she was currently on her way to. I, of course, was overjoyed by the offer and gratefully accepted.

The sweat was to take place at the First Nations Men's Healing Centre, which is a facility where inmates of the provincial prison system are able to go for rehabilitation. An alternative to time in the prison system; the program focuses on using the spiritual roots of the indigenous people to put the men back on the right track. Roots which they may have not had any connection to prior to their incarceration.

I arrived and was introduced to everyone. All of the men at the healing lodge were very friendly, and made me feel as welcome as if I was part of the group. I made my offering of tobacco to the elder, as is custom for any guests, and he accepted my request to participate in the ceremony. The sweat lodge consisted of a small, squat building, with a large bonfire outside. Inside the building was a smaller, dome shaped structure. Imagine an igloo made out of many thick layers of canvas and other materials.

Before I get into the actual experience, I'll give you a little bit of background on the sweat ceremony. The ceremony is intended as a method of healing, praying for loved ones, and shedding any worries that have been burdening you. I realize that this description may not be completely accurate, but this is what I came to understand in my own experience. All of the men gather inside, and literally sweat for an hour. The hour is split into 4 rounds, as each 15 minutes takes quite a bit out of a person. I was the only non-First Nation person present.

Inside the small structure which I described there is no source of light. It is circular, and in the center is something which looks somewhat like an empty fire pit. I soon realized that the source of our heat for the sweat was underneath the bonfire, which was burning strongly outside.

Beneath the large logs on the fire lay a pile of rocks. The men carried all of the red hot rocks into the sweat lodge, and placed them in the pit.

Once everything was prepared and our rocks were in place we all changed into shorts and grabbed our towels. We all piled into the structure and began the ceremony. It began with sharing among the participants of the sweat. Sharing troubles, worries, prayers, etc. Each person who had a prayer to make publicly to the creator offered both tobacco and a couple lengths of cloth. The Ceremony is meant to symbolize a rebirth, the structure being a mothers womb, and the struggle that you go through during the ceremony being the difficult process of birth.

After all the prayers had been made we began the first round of the sweat ceremony. The flap which was used as an entrance was closed, and it became pitch black. The Elder said a prayer, and they began to douse the rocks in water, creating steam and heat. Immediately the sweat started pouring. The heat was intense. Imagine a sauna, now multiply that experience by 4.

During the ceremony the men of the group prayed and sang in their indigenous tongue, accompanying with drums.

The first round of this ceremony was easily one of the most intense, one of the hottest, and one of the most tiring experiences of my life. Before beginning the first round the Elder had given me instructions regarding what to do in the case that breathing becomes too hard. He gave me a handful of Sage, and instructed me to hold my head low, covered by the towel, and to breathe through the handful of Sage. Well, breathing quickly turned out to be the most difficult barrier opposing me. I held in for the entire first round, having to lie down at one point because I was having so much trouble.

Following the 15 minute round, the entire group steps out into the lodge for a quick break; to regain your breath, and cool down a little. I stepped outside in my shorts and bare chest, and didn't feel the cold for a good 5 minutes (it must have been at least -15 without the windchill, and the steam came off of me long after I left the lodge). After the first round I was almost scared to enter for the 2nd...scratch that, I WAS scared.

It turned out that the 2nd round was not as difficult as the first (I didn't even have to use my sage for this one! Wohoo!). The ceremony continued with the same kind of music and prayer that occurred during the first round. The 3rd and 4th followed in a similar fashion. Once the 4th round had been completed we made offerings of corn, tea, and strawberries to the spirits; placing a portion of each in the centre, on top of the rocks. We passed the bowl around and had a portion each. Following the food offering all of the sweat participants passed the peace pipe around our circle, each taking a draw of smoke. This completed the ceremony.

Following every sweat ceremony is a feast for the participants. Our feast consisted of stew, bannock, corn, and trout. The food was fantastic, and the company was enjoyable. You come out of an experience like that with a much better understanding of the individuals who shared it with you. I am so overjoyed by the fact that I was able to experience this wonderful part of First Nation culture. The fact that I was able to connect with a group of prison inmates, who I would have avoided prior to the experience, is just an added bonus. I developed more of an understanding towards people within the prison system, and had an experience which is not likely to present itself again within the span of my life.

Raisin' Funds, Watchin' Hockey, and All Those Good Things...

Sorry I've failed to post in such a long time. The reality is that there isn't much news, or change since my last post. Work at the Canadian Red Cross continues to be busy. The Donations have tailed off a little bit, but the paperwork remains...
NOTE: I've recently been told that 94% of Haiti funds donated to the Canadian Red Cross make it to the ground. The Operating costs for this disaster will not exceed 6%. The 85% figure applies for general, unspecified donations.


Josue is doing well, as usual. His language is always improving, and he's seeming more and more comfortable and accustomed to Canadian life. If I didn't know him (and he didn't speak to me) I would assume that he has lived here his entire life. I'm so impressed by how open to new experiences he has been.


Kayla, Catherine and I, along with our respective counterparts, have been working on a fundraiser which is to be held on the 7th of February. It is to consist of a night at 'Amy's Restaurant on Second' Complete with live jazz music, cheesecake & coffee, and a series of silent auctions/raffles. We have dubbed this event "Evening at Amy's". It has been my job to organize the collection of donated products for our silent auction. The generosity of this town is one of the many things that remind me of my home community. It seems that the majority of businesses which we have canvassed have contributed a significant donation of some sort. Why, just today we had one of the local cafe's offer to provide us with all of our coffee for the night. Kind of restores your faith in the kindness of people and the power of a tight community. Everyone seems keen on our program, and what it has to offer Prince Albert within the next 4 years of its presence here. I'll let ya' all know how it goes!


Like I said, nothing much new here in PA. But with that being said, everything is still excellent!
I hope everyone is well, and I can't wait to see you all soon! (1 Month...wow)

Canadian Red Cross..

Work at the Red Cross has been hectic since the devastating earthquake in Haiti. During our work day we don't even have time to go for lunch, having so many walk-in's. Over the past two days in which the Red Cross has been open we've raised over $13,000 dollars for the Haitian earthquake fund, $10.9 million dollars Nationally (as of noon, Friday). I would encourage everyone to make some kind of donation to the Red Cross for the Haitian Earthquake fund. I know that almost all of the funds that are donated to the Red Cross make it to the people in need, only 15% lost through transportation and administration costs.

I couldn't be more happy about my workplace, because unlike some of the other volunteer placements I KNOW that I'm making a difference in the lives of others. I plan to continue volunteering for the Red Cross when I return to Ottawa. Also, one of the ladies who used to work out of our office now works in Ottawa. There's a good chance that I may be able to get a summer job at the Red Cross and work full time.

Olympic Celebrations, featuring Buckles.

This weekend in Prince Albert there was a large bash held to celebrate the 2010 Olympic games, and the passing of the torch through town. The best part of these celebrations was the large number of mascot oriented activities, especially given the fact that I had the opportunity to wear the Red Cross mascot, 'Buckles' (The Giant life preserver). Along with me in costume were 3 other members of my group: Kayla was Pat, the PA Tourism squirrel; Michel was Fat Cat for North Western Credit Union; and Luis Carlos wore PA tourism's old Scoobi-Doo outfit, which we decided to make our CWY mascot.

We began the events during a game hosted by PA's WHL team, the Prince Albert Raiders; PA vs. Moose Jaw. There were about 12 mascots who were able to participate in a events throughout the night, including a giant tricycle race on the ice during the first period and greeting all of the fans. Too fun for words. Not to mention the fact that it was a fantastic game.

The second day was even better. It was held at 'Little Red Park', which is about 5 minutes outside of PA. This venue has, among other things, an ok little ski hill which was available throughout the day. I spent the day participating in the "Mascot Olympics". The Mascot Olympics featured an ice hockey game, rubber chicken toss, and toboggan race; all while in costume. I spent the rest of the day giving out hugs to little kids, and trying my hand at Skiing while in costume.

Tonight was the actual torch run, and there was a large show downtown. Basically an hour and a half of advertising on behalf of RBC and Coca-Cola. By the time the torch actually made its way into the downtown square we had had about enough of "our fabulous sponsors", and were ready to head home. Good thing to have experienced, but I don't think I would do it again. Kind of ruined the concept that I had fashioned for myself regarding what the Olympic Games symbolize.