Remembering

I never met my great grandmother, but I still feel her sadness at the loss of  three of her boys in the trenches of World War1.  In 1925 she lost a fourth as well - shot down over Afghanistan of all places.  These tragic stories come out every November.  They almost seem to find echoes in the weather with the chill wind blowing dead leaves in spirals across the streets.
Everything keeps changing and our little lives are so short and precious.  The fresh-faced young cadets will soon become the grey haired seniors with their canes and walkers; if they are that lucky.
After the ceremony I always have some interesting conversations with people I never met before.  The civic election is almost upon us, yet it feels somehow inappropriate to use the occasion for political self-promotion.  Still, I would not be much of an elected official if I did not make the effort to get out in the community and talk to people.  All of the candidates have the same problem - getting known - how are people supposed to know who to vote for if the candidates don't work to hard to contact strangers?  We all claim to value democracy, but it does not happen by accident.
During this election I've felt tremendous sympathy for the efforts of the 37 people seeking elected office in Delta.  Many elementary schools in Delta teach virtues very directly.  Candidates need quite a few: courage, determination, honesty, empathy, diligence, discrimination, optimism, kindness, respect, resilience..... I could go on.  I also appreciate the level of civility shown in the debates; although it unfortunately doesn't make for strong media coverage.  I hope the voters figure this out and do some research.  Won't it be great if the results on November 19th actually do represent the thoughtful choices of a majority of Delta people?