Friday, June 13th, 2014

Grand Forks, British Columbia

In The Doukhobors’ Town


I went to the emergency ward at the local hospital simply to address a fingernail infection.  The pain of it kept me up most of the night – no connection to Friday the 13^th full moon I hope.  While waiting with patients for some treatment, I clued into some of the conversations.  Topical were the two subjects of disease and death. 

“It’s all those chemicals they put in the food that’s causing the cancer.  It’s killing all my friends,” said a woman to an acquaintance. 

Then a new patient took a seat and told me why he was in the hospital, “Lower back issues,” he said.  I suggested he walk, which is what I did when I encountered low back spasms.  Another older woman, 88, with a walking cane, intimated to me that even with her cane she falls frequently.  Then she showed me the bruises on her legs – the result of injury from collapsing.  One couple started the conversation on euthanasia, about willful and premature dying.  This all sounded somewhat depressing. 

I was compelled to tell each and all about the actual truth regarding dying as being superficial.  The spirit goes on, only the body is shed.  I felt, however, that the opportunity didn’t really arise.  Friendship and listening was apropos, as opposed to preaching a sermon.  Many of those really good folks I chatted with and listened to have a unique ancestral background. 

The history of Grand Forks is very interesting with many of the early settlers being immigrants from Russia.  The particular group were known as the Doukhobors, which when translated means, spirit fighter.  After renouncing the rituals of the Russian Orthodox Church, and refusing Russia military service, these early Doukhobors faced intense persecution by the church and state.  There was help from a number of influential humanitarians including the famous writer, Leo Tolstoy.  Apparently about 8,000 Doukhobors escaped Tsarist Russia and migrated to Canada in 1899.  Many settled in this area.  They were largely vegetarians as diet was concerned.  One of the radical branches of the Doukhobors would protest in the nude, and that was in the 1920’s, and that was a group called The Sons of Freedom. 

When I spoke to elders in the area, not necessarily the people I met in the hospital, some of their woes were that the current young generation keep meagerly to the ways of their ancestors. 

May the Source be with you!

30 KM