Joy Drop: Who doesn’t love a Game 7?

Hello, from Panama! I am down here for a glorious couple of days and I have visited the Panama Canal, several beautiful cathedrals and had the most delicious ceviche. I love ceviche. It’s known as a Peruvian delicacy but many countries in Central and South America have their own take on it. 

The key (according to Carlos, our savvy and knowledgeable Uber driver) is lime juice. You need copious amounts of lime juice.

Ceviche is served cold and made with fish or shellfish that is marinated in citrus juices with chilis and fresh herbs for a long time. According to a food website: “Acid in the marinade denatures the proteins in the fish, causing it to become opaque and producing a firm, flaky texture, similar to when it’s cooked with heat.” The fish isn’t raw per se, it’s treated and fine to eat. The freshness of the fish and the citrus goes beautifully in a hot climate. 

I found a recipe that is truly extraordinary. (Here) 

Speaking of wonderful, the WNBA season starts soon and as a fantastic prelude there is a game on May 4 in Edmonton. Some Canadian vendors have products launching to support the WNBA in Canada. This venture supports women-run businesses and many of them are racialized women. I recently purchased a candle from Scents by Fay, run by Furhana Glass-Smith, and it is formidable. It brings me a lot of joy knowing I can support women’s sports as well as a women-owned local business. 

The Toronto PWHL clinched the top seed in the playoffs starting next week, and the Toronto Maple Leafs forced a Game 7 in Boston on Saturday. It was great to see elite Toronto hockey players supporting their fellow athletes. It’s important to have encouragement and recognition from each organization for one other. And I say this as a genetic Habs fan. 

I saw a promo for an episode I can’t wait to watch in the series called Swan Song. It’s about Siphe November, a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Canada. Swan Song is hosted by Canadian ballet legend Karen Cain. Its executive producer is Canadian actress Neve Campbell and the show is not sugar-coated. It talks about racism, body image and mental health obstacles and challenges in dance culture. I have had the pleasure of watching Siphe November dance before and I am so interested in the storytelling and the filmography. There is something so pure and genuine about this series, much like dance itself. 

As the world continues to be perplexing and stressful, I would like to take a minute to recognize the power of students. Whether or not you agree with a political position, the freedom of expression and protest is one of the most important foundations of any society. In my life I have witnessed blockades, protests and conflicts. I remember students leading protests in Tiananmen Square in China and later read about it from Canadian writer Jan Wong.

How do we want history to remember these moments? How will we treat your youth? And how do we still find joy in anything? How do we encourage them to? That is the challenge and I, for one, will keep trying.