Our national anthem was composed by a man named Calixa Lavallee in the year 1880 in honor of Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day. My grandfather always told us that Calixa was a distant relative of ours and that we should be proud of our musical roots and the role our family played in shaping the history of our country.
As men, we are taught early on to be providers. We sacrifice a lot to make sure our loved ones are well taken care of. And that can mean putting our own personal stuff on the back burner. And yet, like anything else, it can creep back into our lives if we don't do something about it. But what if that problem isn't something others can see?
May 7, 2017 is National Child and Youth Mental Health Day, and this year we’re challenging you to connect with youth in our community. Currently 15% of Canadian youth are facing mental health challenges. That number significantly increases when we look at how this crisis impacts the family unit and in turn our community.
We've all seen it before. Someone parks in the handicapped zone. We see them leisurely walk out of their car towards a store. Some of us may wonder how that person is affected. Others might think there's nothing wrong with them.
I have no personal experience with breast cancer. The women in my family have been mostly blessed with good health and perhaps good genes. My maternal grandmother battled bone cancer that metastasized from breast cancer, but I was only five at the time. My only real memory is of the last time I spoke to her and she told me that I was her favourite.