I feel like the time is passing so quickly, it’s hard to believe that we have been up North for almost 3 weeks now.
Work is starting to have more of a flow and routine, although there is definitely always room for surprises! When I leave the fire hall in the morning I always make sure to pack my bag with the essentials: bug spray, bear spray, raincoat, rubber boots, and snacks. You never know what the day might entail, or what kind of fun wether one might encounter!
One of my favourite things continues to be assisting with Covid-19 testing, not only do I feel that it is great public health experience, but it is such a great excuse to meet community members!
This past week we also drove out to all of the houses and delivered PPE as well as information on Covid-19. Bumping down gravel roads I have been able to see the beautiful landscape, luscious gardens, and (sometimes) friendly dogs! This was roughly a two-day excursion as the nation is fairly spread out and sometimes conversations become very extended 🙂 I have so appreciated this openness to share stories, get a quick tour of the backyard or speak about rising Covid-19 cases. Talking about openness to share, we even had a community member deliver some fresh garden produce to the fire hall and we were invited over for dinner! Stenette and I made a delicious rhubarb cornbread with the fresh ingredients, and are gobbling up the other fresh goodies!
After months of working remotely and completing classes via distance learning, I have found that hours of interaction are actually quite draining. Please do not confuse this with not enjoying it or cherishing the interactions, it is rather different. I think it is just an interesting shift from so much time in isolation compared to hours of in-person conversation. It is a rather unusual scenario for me as typically I find interacting with others as a recharging activity, I wonder what this will look like for others as people begin returning to work.
Apart from work I have had time to explore my surroundings, I have been out on my bike quite often, out camping at nearby lakes, and eating all of the ice cream at lime blue in fort vermillion! Last Saturday I was out for a bike ride just basking in the sun when I saw the car in front of me begin to slow down. I looked up and saw a black bear crossing the road in front of me. I wish someone could have captured my face on camera as I’m sure it would have been priceless. Although I had my bear spray with me I turned around and rode like I was in the leaders position on the tour de France. I don’t know if I have ever moved so fast!
I later shared this experience with a community member who laughed and said…”well it’s the summer!” There are a fair amount of black bears in the community, and this is not the same novel experience as it was for me! I thought this was humorous!
This week security checkpoints have begun in both Boyer River and Child Lake, they are monitoring activity into and out of the nation as well as handing out PPE. The cases are continuing to rise in Mackenzie county, although there have been no cases yet within BFN.
The emergency response team is very talented and organized and I am confident that the precautions taken will mitigate risk for the community.
engagenorth2020 