Opinion

One of the overwhelming things about the holidays is the packaging. After unwrapping gifts there were piles of papers. The Boxing Day advertisements filled the mail box and toys and gadgets were carefully packed into boxes and quickly set aside.

How many tragedies like Sandy Hook Elementary School (Connecticut), or the Sikh Temple in Wisconsin, or the movie theatre in Colorado, all in less than six months will lead to something changing? Now add Columbine (Colorado), école Polytechnique (Mon

This year's Citizen of the Year for Humboldt and area - Gwen Saret - is a pretty impressive lady. And the work that she has done, I think, demonstrates how doing a bit at a time, consistently, can make a huge difference in a community over time.

Dear Editor Alex McPhail manages to fail on quite a few points during his anti-gun commentary (All Over the Map, Dec. 19).

Ed, my neighbour next door, tends to grin easily and I never know what is happening behind his sly smile. He claims he can keep his personal business hidden behind his grin.

If you have the opportunity to drive down 12th Avenue in North Battleford at night you will notice the magical feeling of the decorative light standards in their full radiance.

A very special bouquet to the person who cleared my driveway on the morning of Dec. 20. Lorene

Dear Editor Did you know Tommy Douglas envisioned two phases of medicare? He said the first, removing financial barriers to health care, would be easy compared to the second, a shift to preventative care.

Songs make the season for me. They don't have to be filled with good wishes or holiday cheer. I like the ones with lyrics that tumble raw from the lips of the artist and make me smile or yearn. Over the past year I've attended some major shows.

While visiting friends in Manitoba a while back, I noticed something while going for a walk in their neighbourhood. Every fourth house or so, there was a green plastic box on the lawn.