Opinion

So, we’ve gone through the territorial election and now the jockeying begins to see who will be the next premier and cabinet ministers. Let’s get ready to rumblllllle. Eschia, take it easy, eh!

Editor’s note: This is the third and final installment of former Yellowknife resident Barry Zellen and his interviews with author Ed Struzik and former NNSL Media editor James Hrynyshyn about the forest fire season.

When it comes to the vote for the next NWT premier, I have a different view than Michael Miltenberger.

During this election season, I’ve often heard the term “consensus government” thrown around by aspiring MLAs, journalists and commentators alike.

Editor’s note: This is the second part of a three-part series from former Yellowknife resident Barry Zellen and his interviews with author Ed Struzik and former NNSL Media editor James Hrynyshyn about the forest fire season.

“But, is she Indigenous?” The directness of my aunties question startled me. I love her bold, often brash attitude, my dear Auntie - she’s always laughing, but when she first asked me, I was startled. I realized she was asking me as if I might have actually had answers. Many of us were, are, seeking understanding, but while I had thoughts, feelings, ideas, I didn’t have any concrete answers, and so, instead, we began to unpack, together.

My last three articles were about NDEs - Near Death Experiences. These amazing experiences have been reported by millions of people from around the world. Some believe they are the result of an abnormal brain during a medical crisis such as a heart attack. Others believe they are glimpses of the “other side.” I have read thousands of cases and have interviewed up to fifty people who report having an NDE. What is an NDE?

I always find it a little amazing when I am walking across a lake that has recently frozen over. Especially when you realize that there are fish down below you, still swimming about and living their lives. It really hits home when you can see them through clear ice before the lakes get covered in snow. I was out working one early winter doing some work on an island not far from shore and I was boating to it each day.

This summer, 65 per cent of the Northwest Territories’ 46,000 residents evacuated, including almost the entire population of Yellowknife, due to a wildfire.

Paraphrasing, he said, “The child looked at my chocolate bar with hope in his eyes. I threw it to him but bigger kids around him grabbed it. He laid down and died.”