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2023 HERITAGE SASKATCHEWAN AWARD - Living Heritage

(click photo to read) Saskatchewan History Short Story Collection

MOST READ POSTS

Retirement | 10 Important Tips to Live Your Best Life

One of the cool things about blogging or journaling is that you can look back and see what you were thinking about at different stages of your life . This opportunity to reflect helps us to understand where we stepped off our path and what we have learned along the way that we can share with others. My second year of blogging and my second year of retirement are one and the same to me. I started blogging the week I retired, so the two are intertwined. Some of what I learned and a few of my favourite quotes from the past year are listed below. They may seem like a given, but just because something seems obvious does not mean it is going to be easy to do. 10 IMPORTANT TIPS TO LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE 1. CONTINUE TO LEARN Looking back at what I wrote about over the past year, I see that I did a lot of thinking about places that are close to home for me and that have personal significance. I learned the history of areas that have been right in front of me for ye...

7 Things I’ve Learned | Retirement Year 1

This article was published in Living the Second Act Magazine. Retirees often say they are busier after they retire than when they were working. They don't know how they managed to work full-time before. I am starting to understand what they mean. The retirement experience is different for everyone. There are many factors that affect what we do in retirement; health issues, age, finances, the geographical location where we live and family commitments. It has been one year since I retired from my full-time job. I want to share a few things I learned that I feel are important when preparing for retirement. #1 Make a Life for Yourself Make a life for yourself outside of your spouse and children ahead of retirement. Some people are fortunate and have defined interests they bring into retirement that they have been honing for years. Others retire and realize things about themselves they never knew. They become painters, writers, artists, builders, and entrepreneurs. We are ea...

70s Teenager | 6 Things That Will Take You Back

When I think back to being a Saskatchewan, small-town teenager in the late seventies and early eighties many thoughts and images come to mind. You may be able to relate to some of them. FASHION AND BEAUTY Hair - long, natural and parted down the middle - not sure what was with my funky, cow-licked bangs Makeup - dark blue eye shadow - heavy black mascara Jewelry - neck chokers in leather, macramé or velvet - mood necklaces and rings - ID bracelets - hoop earrings - birthstone rings, necklaces and scarf pins - ankle bracelets Purses - brown leather sling shoulder bags Clothing - bright, patterned colours - silk blouses - graphic t-shirts - velvet and velour outfits - wide legged jeans rolled up at the bottom - jeans with patterned insets in the bottom outside seam - jean jackets - two-piece bathing suits - jean cut-off shorts - school and team jackets - bunny hugs (and ...

History in the Making | COVID-19

As I write this article, we are living a part of history. Most people never have the time to be alone with their thoughts. They get up and hit the ground running until they flop back into bed at night. At the end of 2019 society was oblivious to what was about to unfold. In January, we started to hear about cases of a new illness that was spreading overseas called coronavirus disease 2019 which was abbreviated to COVID-19. In February, we saw images of thousands of people stranded on cruise ships. The sight of people with protective masks over their faces was common on television. In March, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. A pandemic is a global outbreak of a disease. The number of people with the virus has steadily risen. Thousands of people have recovered from the virus, but tragically there has been significant loss of life as well. Schools and businesses have been require...

Leask Bids Farewell to Cafe Owners

by Norma Galambos and Diane Harris Kai and Janet Wong, owner-operators of the Leask Cafeteria, have sold the business and are retiring to Saskatoon. Kai and Janet purchased the cafeteria in late 1990 and moved from Saskatoon to Leask with their sons. Andy was two at the time, and Jason was only two-months-old. On January 1, 1991, they opened their doors, serving the community of Leask and the surrounding area for almost thirty years. Business people and visitors often stopped at the cafe to enjoy Chinese or Canadian meals. Coffee row at Kai and Janet’s was a place for people to gather to discuss current events and share their stories. They were referred to as “The Wongs” or simply “Kai and Janet,” everyone knew them. Customers always received a smile and a warm greeting. They also supported community events throughout the years. Kai and Janet prepared Sunday smorgs and catered parties. They worked long hours, often seven days a week, while raising their boys. Th...

The House on the Farm

I have often wondered why certain memories are so vividly imprinted in our minds and others are discarded into the winds of time. Our senses can trigger memories - smells, sights, tastes, sounds and the feel of something beneath our touch. I have many fond recollections of the home where I grew up that I’d like to share with you. The house on the farm was located three miles east of Leask in central Saskatchewan. It was constructed on a half section of land that my paternal grandparents bought in 1924. The land wasn’t broke so with a lot of elbow grease, an axe, a grub hoe and horses the land was cleared. Two men were hired to help, with their pay being a young, fat pig. Grandma and Grandpa lived in a granary while the house was being built. When power was later installed, they sheeted the walls in, hiding the wiring near the ceiling under the moulding. The house was painted a cream colour with green trim. A large television antennae sat perched on the wood shingled roof. ...

Farmer John and Jane

Every community has interesting characters that people remember, and subsequent generations learn about them through stories passed down. Farmer John and Jane were two such individuals who left a lasting impression. When I published this story, it was interesting to see that people in their 30s knew about John and Jane from stories their grandparents had I told them. Their story is reaching into the fourth generation in some cases. John was born on December 26, 1870, in Aldershot, Kent, England, thirty miles southwest of London. Jane was born in England in 1886 and was approximately fifteen when she met John. They ran away together, immigrating to the United States, but it is believed they never married. They stayed in the United States for a while, playing their musical instruments on New York streets to make a few dollars. They made their way to Saskatchewan in a gypsy caravan in 1904. A caravan is a horse-drawn living wagon. Initially, they came to the D...

Change Your Mindset | Change Your Life

This article was published in Living the Second Act Magazine. Do fear and anxiety prevent you from doing the things you want to do? When I retired, I struggled with the question; am I getting away from something or moving toward something? Our mindset is the e s tablished set of attitudes we hav e. These attitudes play a major role in determining our path in life. C hanging our mindset involves personal work. We don’t have to be stuck with the same mindset forever, as it can change throughout our lives. 7 Points to Consider 1. Procrastination The minutes of our lives are precious and non-renewable. Once we have spent those minutes we can’t change how we used them or get them back. We shouldn't put off doing the things we want to do or going to the places we'd like to see. The time to be happy is now. What are we waiting for? 2. Pessimism Negative thinking can keep us from taking charge of our lives. If we expec...

The Paris Cafe | Est. 1917 | Leask, SK

This story is published in the Saskatchewan History & Folklore Society Magazine - Folklore Winter 2021-2022. Small-town cafes have always been an integral part of the history of communities throughout Canada. This is the story of one such establishment, the Paris Cafe, Leask, Saskatchewan. THE EARLY YEARS A lady by the name of Mrs. Game and her son, Monty, who was the first teacher at the school, opened a cafe and rooming house in 1913. When Monty was killed in World War I, she sold the business and moved to Ontario in 1917. Charles Mack Hun Sung Sr. was born in 1900 in Canton, China. He immigrated to Canada in 1912 and worked in Prince Albert. In 1917, he came to Leask and began operating the business as the Paris Cafe. In 1922, Charles Sr. travelled by train to Vancouver, where he married Mah Fay Ping, born in 1908 in Canton, China. Together, they returned to Saskatchewan to operate the cafe. Fire destroyed the original building in 1928, but a new one was so...

Back in the Day | Summertime on the Farm

This story was published in Prairies North Magazine. The use of the phrase "back in the day" to signal the start of a life lesson story is one of my favorite ways to encourage conversation. Those words cause my family's eyes to glaze over as they brace themselves for another cliff-hanger. Much to my delight, though, I can sense their minds being drawn back in time with me. I have many cherished memories of growing up on the farm near Leask, Saskatchewan in the sixties and seventies and would love to reminisce a bit with you. We had the proverbial big red barn with the large hayloft doors. When it was time to put the hay up, the men used a rope and pulley system to maneuver the hay through the doors into the loft. When the rope was not in use, it was slung across the hayloft and was an object of great fascination for my brother and me. We would perch precariously on the rope swinging back and forth across the loft. Playing in the bale stacks was great fun, we would h...

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