So, what exactly has Russia accomplished with its February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine to this point? Has its invasion been a success in any way? How would Russia define (or re-define) success?
It has been 21 months since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Where do things stand?
I think it’s important to note that I actually cry very easily at certain things: anytime animals or children are hurt, suffering, or missed; Remembrance Day; certain movies; and anything that makes me think of how much I love my wife and daughter.
My parents’ deaths were 15 years apart and each occurred within the context of such a dysfunctional family dynamic, that it’s difficult (and unnecessary, for the purposes of this piece) to describe it all.
I got a call on a cold November evening in 1979 while I was engrossed in the first few months of my University of Alberta studies, living in my cozy little off-campus Edmonton basement suite; bear in mind that those were the days before call display and when calling long-distance wasn’t an expense to be taken lightly. It was my high school basketball coach.
I think about death. Not in a fearful or worrisome way, or about what happens after we die, but about the role that death and grief play in our lives.
I want to go to a junkyard again with the old shiplap garage that has a potbellied stove in the corner...
