I see that my last entry here was 7 months ago, as Canada neared the end of the third wave of COVID-19. Summer had arrived, vaccinations were on the rise, and we were all feeling optimistic, cautiously socializing and enjoying a warm-weather modicum of normality. My summer got hectic and my writing time greatly curtailed. It became tough making space for it again.
Today we’re in the thick of a super-transmissible fourth wave that no one expected. Nevertheless, vaccinations are high and active illness low, so I feel confident that it’s the last gasp of this awful pandemic.
It is also nearly the two-year anniversary of when we met two of our sons and their families in Texas for a vacation. I clearly recall chatting about the news of the day which included the detection of a new coronavirus in China… and, well, the rest is history.
2020 was difficult, but for me, 2021 was much tougher. Still, I’ve often thought about writing here, even as the focal points have shifted a bit. They include:
#1. Continuing to record my past: my personal life as a white, middle-class female, born and raised and living in Canada, plus my primarily Scottish (but also English and Bohemian) genealogy.
#2. Continuing to outline the tremendous changes I’ve seen in my lifetime, viewed from the vantage point of #1.
#3. Writing more regularly in the blog… how I evaluate the world around me… the direction I’m now moving in… or simply what I’m pondering on any given day. It’s about what makes me “me”.
Most of this is for my family, but specifically for my young grandchildren who are about to embark upon a life of incredible planetary challenges. I hope that the life and times of Sydney Jo will provide some recent historical insight and perhaps add to their global context the reality of one particular grain of sand.
Whoever else may happen by, I’m happy to welcome you to my wee part of the beach.
My Name is Sydney Jo 