tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72864560096513739252024-03-13T03:35:39.711-04:00 Author: Vickram BachanABOUT VICK: Vickram Bachan is a Canadian author. Creative writing is one of his specialties, and one of the things he loves to do most!
Vick loves to fill a blank page with a pen and creating something that never existed before; he only hopes people will love and have as much fun reading his work as he did writing it!
Here you will enjoy some of his amazing poetry, along with information and stories on his other writing projects! Enjoy!Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comBlogger257125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-20512978821174686332024-01-01T00:04:00.001-05:002024-01-02T00:05:09.128-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-70328958806156076902023-12-31T23:20:00.001-05:002023-12-31T23:20:36.320-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-33593944250553211862023-12-25T20:59:00.001-05:002023-12-25T20:59:45.236-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-3356102792406959602023-12-24T14:03:00.001-05:002023-12-24T14:03:32.413-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-56135547479127615192023-12-04T22:25:00.005-05:002024-02-07T20:56:22.094-05:00Published in "The Path" - New collection out now!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhneHMJ9BVmKLnCldVYn9MRbVKHosEgwUtWXsHsh8fRfDYXbyO6U0Y00ONwmVFTAzUb95MF1Qp8jEPmcgQDn_klgDFR8DFrD23IX-3bRCvOEsEirdzlofIq-6ooRJLPK0rL-v-OUfUfVEjYrmMI2eqrvbaDsqKCyQjnKvwccprEKHvNZkS7btSpuA5zmmzR/s1956/The%20Path%20cover.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1935" data-original-width="1956" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhneHMJ9BVmKLnCldVYn9MRbVKHosEgwUtWXsHsh8fRfDYXbyO6U0Y00ONwmVFTAzUb95MF1Qp8jEPmcgQDn_klgDFR8DFrD23IX-3bRCvOEsEirdzlofIq-6ooRJLPK0rL-v-OUfUfVEjYrmMI2eqrvbaDsqKCyQjnKvwccprEKHvNZkS7btSpuA5zmmzR/w169-h252/The%20Path%20cover.jpeg" width="169" /></a></div>Newly released from The Polar Expressions Publishing, just in time for the holidays! Pick up your copy of <i>The Path</i>, a wonderful new collection of short stories, which features my new short story, <i>Ocean Garbage</i>. <div>A perfect holiday gift for the avid readers in your life! </div><div><br /></div><div>My story, Ocean Garbage, is a story of destiny. Some may call it a wild coincidence, some may call it fate, but ultimately the message is abundantly clear, what's meant to be will be.<br /><br />Read my new short story as well as great short stories from many other excellence Canadian writers. <p></p></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Order your copy here now! <a href="http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop.html" target="_blank">http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop</a> </div>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-80205241829836744292023-12-04T22:24:00.004-05:002024-02-07T21:08:56.424-05:00Published in "Flicker" - New book out now!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoswTumGYIeRU2TX7yk5TTz8cqt1VX7ghumlmaJWt01HcW0m2SsJk4fcjJnRV-K-J6vyATPrdpGSq_L1KLpTGQ2YivcaaEHGrvGSii0sI5hlIIHJcLu6zIG7ZCN1p8LJJE6lahpFj23bvuVnNuLVX0eJM9aucJ_S-TM_bP0GGmNK1sDTGy99aXewTOLvZ_/s2700/Flicker%20cover.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoswTumGYIeRU2TX7yk5TTz8cqt1VX7ghumlmaJWt01HcW0m2SsJk4fcjJnRV-K-J6vyATPrdpGSq_L1KLpTGQ2YivcaaEHGrvGSii0sI5hlIIHJcLu6zIG7ZCN1p8LJJE6lahpFj23bvuVnNuLVX0eJM9aucJ_S-TM_bP0GGmNK1sDTGy99aXewTOLvZ_/w154-h231/Flicker%20cover.jpeg" width="154" /></a></div>Now out from The Polar Expressions Publishing, just in time for the Christmas season! Pick up your copy of <i>Flicker</i>, a wonderful new collection of poetry, which features my new poem, <i>Marauding of the Turtle</i>. <div>The perfect holiday gift for all the avid readers in your life! </div><div><br />Read my new poem as well as other excellent poetry from many other talented Canadian writers. <p></p></div><div>Flicker is available now for purchase. Order your copy here: <a href="http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop.html" target="_blank">http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop</a> </div><p></p>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-80257153349036688022023-11-11T11:11:00.001-05:002023-11-11T19:04:00.302-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-79020834686110602072023-11-02T23:17:00.004-04:002023-11-06T22:05:37.650-05:00Ontario Volunteer Service Award 2023 <p>This evening I was honoured to once again be a recipient of the Ontario Volunteer Service Award for my 15 years of volunteering in schools and the education community. This 2023 award presentation ceremony was held in downtown Toronto. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh49uYRz-fhLnrgvDwgnF6dEHQKBOS7GMGdL_ivR-ifAIeTEvqaNkLpDelRDr_bmyIIR902pvAN3gZFSlx50f_OUeS50oyDPuoy2b7fRKbmIL3QePFJofFqFa4CoO9HX_0rzGd9ApT62gsvmH8BnK9ow5qRWj5DW9kmq70hCQ7MHuZ-yKXUjS0-Eqxt-BZO/s6000/IMG_0151.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh49uYRz-fhLnrgvDwgnF6dEHQKBOS7GMGdL_ivR-ifAIeTEvqaNkLpDelRDr_bmyIIR902pvAN3gZFSlx50f_OUeS50oyDPuoy2b7fRKbmIL3QePFJofFqFa4CoO9HX_0rzGd9ApT62gsvmH8BnK9ow5qRWj5DW9kmq70hCQ7MHuZ-yKXUjS0-Eqxt-BZO/w503-h335/IMG_0151.JPG" width="503" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG2cRIXVbIMYLghyphenhyphenQGrqnO70PVfwNKds5UoitEOws-IYDvW8D1Fjhikd2epEESaU9ItX0ns9lijQSi1EuNsj6gRJwQoV-0_WRiHDk55E6_jIrTK4ueTReUG3szj4xAN10Gz5FU0Du3nYym0VjTwcBFHROftghf3zOn3LF35vzgCy9oPxghTeBXqEYAX5V9/s6000/IMG_0144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="337" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG2cRIXVbIMYLghyphenhyphenQGrqnO70PVfwNKds5UoitEOws-IYDvW8D1Fjhikd2epEESaU9ItX0ns9lijQSi1EuNsj6gRJwQoV-0_WRiHDk55E6_jIrTK4ueTReUG3szj4xAN10Gz5FU0Du3nYym0VjTwcBFHROftghf3zOn3LF35vzgCy9oPxghTeBXqEYAX5V9/w506-h337/IMG_0144.JPG" width="506" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgViqPcvQkp-WUUZvaar2BzB9qvGMLtVsOFqIxwUe9vvsadb6NFSY5rHZrAj7ihIWJePnCnu51SQS8-gB-8FTMrF-rIdF3NmE2eMV9IgWbICHK5NLZJCwXLUB8xtCR5y7LARSrSUYvwppVkUNssk5jjnyvdqauRBnDoWbmlBU3silhPOT78rj7Rw5MzytGG/s3556/IMG_6350.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2794" data-original-width="3556" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgViqPcvQkp-WUUZvaar2BzB9qvGMLtVsOFqIxwUe9vvsadb6NFSY5rHZrAj7ihIWJePnCnu51SQS8-gB-8FTMrF-rIdF3NmE2eMV9IgWbICHK5NLZJCwXLUB8xtCR5y7LARSrSUYvwppVkUNssk5jjnyvdqauRBnDoWbmlBU3silhPOT78rj7Rw5MzytGG/w504-h394/IMG_6350.jpeg" width="504" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The <a href="https://www.ontario.ca/page/honours-and-awards-volunteering#section-1" target="_blank">Ontario Volunteer Service Award</a> recognizes volunteers for providing committed and dedicated service to an organization in the province. All volunteers in Ontario are eligible for this award who have contributed more than five years of volunteer service. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnx5nOfb9IvPg2d7FzaMB-bzugziXEU4aG8ZJ5JrB5QguEf6CwQ4HUennbIKos1XmBXiCdr_17a292L6jVnId0eai2IrlkfOeVUM-8tRX6GzVs3Lm_d7GTZzp7cYfeTuhNKMgpbrg9gqt_Fmxrwy9yDBA0zwj2CXh19LoyMErhKetFQnztk0w1qzqUCEVZ/s6000/IMG_0142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="339" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnx5nOfb9IvPg2d7FzaMB-bzugziXEU4aG8ZJ5JrB5QguEf6CwQ4HUennbIKos1XmBXiCdr_17a292L6jVnId0eai2IrlkfOeVUM-8tRX6GzVs3Lm_d7GTZzp7cYfeTuhNKMgpbrg9gqt_Fmxrwy9yDBA0zwj2CXh19LoyMErhKetFQnztk0w1qzqUCEVZ/w512-h339/IMG_0142.JPG" width="512" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrnaZPGn44117IolAveV55dGD62Tcs0VxHE24E1DGR3eYmWsTIqhEBtdIQtk-zsBCrHdCFQNoZ16opUq81lgSZXbbK_WcrGdsJnjbxFEFm2lIwmUsiCSl9fGoNv_lvHx5iG2l0x1xNSvCamFCWSc3FEc1rzqGxyud7UhVI2UCUqUiUucCA57PgeLiqJATQ/s6000/IMG_0159.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrnaZPGn44117IolAveV55dGD62Tcs0VxHE24E1DGR3eYmWsTIqhEBtdIQtk-zsBCrHdCFQNoZ16opUq81lgSZXbbK_WcrGdsJnjbxFEFm2lIwmUsiCSl9fGoNv_lvHx5iG2l0x1xNSvCamFCWSc3FEc1rzqGxyud7UhVI2UCUqUiUucCA57PgeLiqJATQ/w513-h341/IMG_0159.JPG" width="513" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5p8nXBOkemO6NoZ9HFSg3tSXtokxdx0tWUg2gzs6H-BQadHROwpK_Uo9_XuN-8O1rY1fNk8ktDhoGw28dpJkM-u8w6Zm5khoGJkm2QkxHsLGX1mThyphenhyphentVAx1ujS6m79f5GE3qcdmruLF7C8sInGTlEGWlbSoWzZgFN-xGz2KONB0bmDHEFv7z4g82Ecq8A/s6000/IMG_0160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5p8nXBOkemO6NoZ9HFSg3tSXtokxdx0tWUg2gzs6H-BQadHROwpK_Uo9_XuN-8O1rY1fNk8ktDhoGw28dpJkM-u8w6Zm5khoGJkm2QkxHsLGX1mThyphenhyphentVAx1ujS6m79f5GE3qcdmruLF7C8sInGTlEGWlbSoWzZgFN-xGz2KONB0bmDHEFv7z4g82Ecq8A/w517-h345/IMG_0160.JPG" width="517" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwTcmg5v_iVWtZDOhNUezyJjG4NnRB-6KO3-6s9Ulo2aXUtuE21qJBtxge99U9hdvz-P8G95PyqJ-EwzYv4WcKcmAvcDoLEFVDmXMkPgdBN9sN3XSltBTNQrGFu1TSIt6XxfAzSs8KycJa6BRI1QGL_cZXvf8OLuCJGPzJKjBoSz1VrIYcLBi3dEiEpk_/s6000/IMG_0162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwTcmg5v_iVWtZDOhNUezyJjG4NnRB-6KO3-6s9Ulo2aXUtuE21qJBtxge99U9hdvz-P8G95PyqJ-EwzYv4WcKcmAvcDoLEFVDmXMkPgdBN9sN3XSltBTNQrGFu1TSIt6XxfAzSs8KycJa6BRI1QGL_cZXvf8OLuCJGPzJKjBoSz1VrIYcLBi3dEiEpk_/w517-h344/IMG_0162.JPG" width="517" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8G4XcM8fGjUHm8KSxuUw51rdPT17j0sxBBjmebLNBDTNEjYLef6lW46IcC0utd5uYkbsto2WhNgMNVtqVOhSowoF3Tx7nK8R42yZwWKsOEXtY3bM90m1eJU2wEtgH1h146N-4yY2DPaoRo6np5mTBpN9bbdqZqYctkm3O06gBcPBDzW6AuJasps8QpeJ/s6000/IMG_0168.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8G4XcM8fGjUHm8KSxuUw51rdPT17j0sxBBjmebLNBDTNEjYLef6lW46IcC0utd5uYkbsto2WhNgMNVtqVOhSowoF3Tx7nK8R42yZwWKsOEXtY3bM90m1eJU2wEtgH1h146N-4yY2DPaoRo6np5mTBpN9bbdqZqYctkm3O06gBcPBDzW6AuJasps8QpeJ/w519-h346/IMG_0168.JPG" width="519" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymaSVt4YmuJtYP-n94Eij5JjffwEGgxf4Se8Pm65dvU3HtQQ6XYZMrOQCltBt2L35JdUl_qe69Y2IMMOhsfeRDE-Ni7prIb0VSJp8yb2OD7Ad2ZM6pHJQ5sf1tpA7XwVjEEDBgnCdm-SyzUdSr7flQIFsGHKFG9jsoLJ9igqwbrNo4Gp41jZv5t4V4cYw/s6000/IMG_0169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymaSVt4YmuJtYP-n94Eij5JjffwEGgxf4Se8Pm65dvU3HtQQ6XYZMrOQCltBt2L35JdUl_qe69Y2IMMOhsfeRDE-Ni7prIb0VSJp8yb2OD7Ad2ZM6pHJQ5sf1tpA7XwVjEEDBgnCdm-SyzUdSr7flQIFsGHKFG9jsoLJ9igqwbrNo4Gp41jZv5t4V4cYw/w520-h347/IMG_0169.JPG" width="520" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A number of special guests also came out to help present the awards! I was honoured to receive my award from NDP MPP Chris Glover as well as two other MPPs. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyH7PqpXStcioVlI-dFYZo6OwsxSpoGpoGDzmUb0hxXukQKS0bPhnwWnLHNXXazzGAMHVH2RT-GvUQ6G5Zdi-2v2ZIdFFt6yZc-iqs5B5Qz4RvV_pfv7qft31xnJdjhT6Bf9CKvMTNzaCjcOF2q_POqts2cO3ygAl9xDVHXLrQ3JZVLGG2NnNNVHqYy9uc/s6000/IMG_0170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyH7PqpXStcioVlI-dFYZo6OwsxSpoGpoGDzmUb0hxXukQKS0bPhnwWnLHNXXazzGAMHVH2RT-GvUQ6G5Zdi-2v2ZIdFFt6yZc-iqs5B5Qz4RvV_pfv7qft31xnJdjhT6Bf9CKvMTNzaCjcOF2q_POqts2cO3ygAl9xDVHXLrQ3JZVLGG2NnNNVHqYy9uc/w519-h345/IMG_0170.JPG" width="519" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQ8b6GWXfCoXvvphytjtPmMAVCdIMjvhVnIO80Tih4Jj5DV5T7X25KMt2a8g-Id_6bvMaHep1wWYxHhrjD-AnCnMjfQXqiIqf-uXi7vok1A4uowr4gStvZLXxH2v171AoTxOuUFDOd9RJ1xpGXOqDDkeOj96zoA_CZ3iIU2JmareB9KONDZLxIda5jvJe/s6000/IMG_0173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQ8b6GWXfCoXvvphytjtPmMAVCdIMjvhVnIO80Tih4Jj5DV5T7X25KMt2a8g-Id_6bvMaHep1wWYxHhrjD-AnCnMjfQXqiIqf-uXi7vok1A4uowr4gStvZLXxH2v171AoTxOuUFDOd9RJ1xpGXOqDDkeOj96zoA_CZ3iIU2JmareB9KONDZLxIda5jvJe/w521-h347/IMG_0173.JPG" width="521" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thank you to the great province of Ontario for this recognition. I am honoured to be a 2023 recipient of the Ontario Volunteer Service Award. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-26667842575662166722023-09-30T10:07:00.007-04:002023-11-06T22:16:21.169-05:00Orange Shirt Day & National Truth and Reconciliation Day<p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Today is the third annual National Truth and Reconciliation Day and the tenth annual Orange Shirt Day.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVfYg0ysBs4n5Qup3JVLBke4zbkCeJpZgYpMRpu1mu7HhV0VyHcygBi755d6PpfhKvKIMN6dQo6FaJywOPMdvV2LmsSqfbZu24hcSpXVzF2nP4ORFIiCfYhbYvrnpF786ivn2ZlqPhHKDqu52ZhDhsJa_ezra3hzNTsJFR14vjpNUFuHQ3bxfGHYvWGISZ/s1154/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-06%20at%2010.15.23%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1154" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVfYg0ysBs4n5Qup3JVLBke4zbkCeJpZgYpMRpu1mu7HhV0VyHcygBi755d6PpfhKvKIMN6dQo6FaJywOPMdvV2LmsSqfbZu24hcSpXVzF2nP4ORFIiCfYhbYvrnpF786ivn2ZlqPhHKDqu52ZhDhsJa_ezra3hzNTsJFR14vjpNUFuHQ3bxfGHYvWGISZ/w205-h167/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-06%20at%2010.15.23%20PM.png" width="205" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">For those who may not know, here's a quick rundown. </span>Residential Schools in Canada where meant to take in Indigenous Children of Turtle Island (Canada) and strip them of their heritage and ways of life, ultimately eliminating their culture. I<span style="font-family: inherit;">n 1973, a </span>young<span style="font-family: inherit;"> six-year-old girl named Phyllis Webstad entered the St. Joseph Mission Residential School in Williams Lake, British Columbia, she was forced to remove her </span>favourite new orange shirt that her grandmother had bought her, along with everything else. Phyllis is just one unfortunate story and example of over 150,000. Phyllis' story is what inspired Orange Shirt Day. <p></p><p>There is also the famous story of 12-year-old Chanie Wenjack, among thousands more. See Gord Downie's hit song "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za2VzjkwtFc" target="_blank">Secret Path</a>" here <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za2VzjkwtFc" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za2VzjkwtFc</a>.</p><p>In honour of today, I wanted to share a poem I wrote a couple years ago. Enjoy!</p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><b><u><span style="font-size: medium;">Ghost from the Past</span></u></b></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p3" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">By Vickram Bachan</span></b></o:p></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p3" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">An ancient dialect forcefully silenced,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Oppressed and intended to be extinguished;</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Believed to have been dead and extinct long ago. </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">But amid the crimes of abuse, and violence, and hate,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">it endured and thrived back into life,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Back into the open.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Not eradicated but vindicated.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">The descendants of an ancient people </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fighting for their ancestors,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">And fighting for justice, </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Wanting to reclaim what was once rightfully theirs,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">What was stolen from them;</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">But also willing to forgive,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">If the other side is willing to reconcile.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">The truth has been unearthed,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">And the bloodstained lies of the past exposed.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Their stories have changed the history books</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">And made them more accurate.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">The fantastical fables of our ‘<i>amazing’</i> origins</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Shoved down our throats </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">now proven to be false.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Apologies have been made </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">for the genocide and discrimination,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">But there is still much work to be done.</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Wronged, so very wronged,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">Yet they are willing to forgive,</span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><span style="font-size: medium;">If the other side is willing to reconcile. </span></span></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span class="ydpe982f3bbyiv2142565008ydpdad75569s2"><br /></span></p>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-6743887897831654642023-09-24T10:30:00.025-04:002023-09-27T19:15:20.904-04:00The inequity of Canada's awards system and the Governor General's office<p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI2Vd6wVAnWiUuExss533CE7Z6WK_RB7VModuNhJE8NICxqcO6Q4TK_soT-FkxDVkaU0v5sZWpbhiuozLCtlK4ZVQf1pVvSEsK9BYOV_jSWe_pqFQA9862I9I561u4h7URKzSGPLWo2AQaBzHzuRHZuF6rBiQyhrLvhfwG6QQ4MUKRJkH3JrCALaTZP-2G/s559/sovereigns-medal-volunteers.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="153" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI2Vd6wVAnWiUuExss533CE7Z6WK_RB7VModuNhJE8NICxqcO6Q4TK_soT-FkxDVkaU0v5sZWpbhiuozLCtlK4ZVQf1pVvSEsK9BYOV_jSWe_pqFQA9862I9I561u4h7URKzSGPLWo2AQaBzHzuRHZuF6rBiQyhrLvhfwG6QQ4MUKRJkH3JrCALaTZP-2G/w102-h370/sovereigns-medal-volunteers.png" width="102" /> </a></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="font-size: large; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH9EnDhhjoXruT2JnI26_Z4QooQ3GXLddvHLSvBRpwxlBG1un-pG7Y-swaxg63tn3_BzDocBLMCeQcAm1Hf1zYuwpHNsKOYyJwgn13OwZfVjwhJkhtf25I1-vSFtHzUBcCgYpzZ7izJ-C3H-cFNmjl9Gr6wj6i7MVHtMYNCCXDkR4OLNMeg33GIbq7JKGU/s2048/134414626_3470184199771635_439923799582462869_n.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH9EnDhhjoXruT2JnI26_Z4QooQ3GXLddvHLSvBRpwxlBG1un-pG7Y-swaxg63tn3_BzDocBLMCeQcAm1Hf1zYuwpHNsKOYyJwgn13OwZfVjwhJkhtf25I1-vSFtHzUBcCgYpzZ7izJ-C3H-cFNmjl9Gr6wj6i7MVHtMYNCCXDkR4OLNMeg33GIbq7JKGU/w383-h288/134414626_3470184199771635_439923799582462869_n.jpeg" width="383" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Screenshot from GG's webpage in 2018 which has since been taken down</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p>Before I begin, let me first just say that in no way is this meant to be me whining and complaining, I am simply expressing my complete disappointment with the inequality and discrimination I continue to face. Everything I'm about to say is my opinion based on my experience and observations, I also provide factual evidence to back it up. </p><p>On September 24, 2018, I was awarded to Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers. At the time I was told that I would have to wait up to two years to receive my medal in a presentation ceremony. Every year in April there is a presentation ceremony at Rideau Hall. I asked if I could attend this ceremony to be presented with my medal from the Governor General, after near a year of going back and forth the with Governor General's office on the matter, I received this unbelievably offensive email from the GG's office on July 3, 2019: <span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="yiv4641218474ydpa021fb52yiv4920879990ydp1b5e86b5yiv1647926157MsoNormal" style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"><i>Hi Vickram,</i></span></p><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><i><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;">Thank you for your email. I need to inform you that the Governor General only presents to a limited number of SMV recipients each year due to her busy schedule. These recipients are selected based on a variety of factors, such as geographical representation, language, gender, and field of contribution. Therefore it is not likely that you will ever be invited to a presentation ceremony in Ottawa with the Governor General. </span><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"> </span></i></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"><i><br clear="none" style="outline: none;" /></i></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><i><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;">We are currently in communication with the office of the mayor of Toronto to organize a presentation ceremony for all of the SMV recipients who live in Toronto</span><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"> and if the mayor is available to present the SMV to the recipients from Toronto, your name will be added to the invitation list. If you do not wish to receive your medal from the mayor of Toronto, you have 2 options: either you can ask the school where you volunteer to present it to you or we can mail the medal directly to your home. </span></i></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"><i><br clear="none" style="outline: none;" /></i></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d; outline: none;"><i>I know that it must be disappointing for you to learn that you will not be receiving your medal from the Governor General. However, receiving the medal from the mayor of Toronto is still a special honour and I am sure that it will be a lovely presentation ceremony. As of now, there is no date set for the presentation ceremony with the mayor of Toronto, so I ask for your patience. </i></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d;"><br /></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><span face="sans-serif" style="color: #1f497d;"><i>Thank you for understanding, ...</i></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;">While I would very much love to share the name of this person, for obvious reasons I will not reveal their identity. </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; outline: none;"><div dir="ltr" style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">I had emailed, for what felt like the twentieth time, to ask if I’d be attending the presentation ceremony with the Governor General at Rideau Hall, and in reply I received a very upsetting inappropriate and offensive email as to why I wouldn't be getting my medal from the Governor General, which I’ve copy and pasted above for you to see. I’ve admittedly been really upset about it ever since because it felt very discriminatory. Even though I was upset by this, I then agreed to receive my medal from the Mayor of Toronto, but that never happened either. <br clear="none" style="outline: none;" /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">When I last heard from them, it was by email on September 24, 2020 (exactly two years after I was awarded the honour) when I was informed that the pandemic had put a hold on everything involving presentation ceremonies. I was originally told in 2018 when I was awarded the honour that a presentation ceremony would happen up to two years after I was awarded the honour, understandably the pandemic affected this and many other things. But things have gone back to normal now and I keep seeing posts on social media of other people receiving their awards. As of today, I have been patiently waiting for exactly five full years to receive my medal. Tomorrow is never guaranteed, and it's disappointing that I have been waiting this long to be invited to a presentation ceremony. </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">I suppose I shouldn't really be surprised. Just look at this <a href="https://youtu.be/TpnFBxQpZsE?si=b6oUklz0dVMIsjyR" target="_blank">video</a> from the inaugural presentation on April 12, 2016. It's so blatantly obvious that only white people were invited to the ceremony. <a href="https://youtu.be/TpnFBxQpZsE?si=b6oUklz0dVMIsjyR" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/</a> That clearly set the precedent because this hasn't changed. </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">Also check out this article from 2021 by the CBC about the Order of Canada. It's all from the same Governor General's office that runs the Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers, again I shouldn't be surprised that it's all only white people getting it. </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;"><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/order-of-canada-diversity-appointments-1.5862366#:~:text=Politics-,Most%20new%20Order%20of%20Canada%20appointees%20are%20white%20men%2C%20despite,diversity%20of%20the%20elite%20group." target="_blank">https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/order-of-canada-appointments</a> </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">Last year, on April 29, 2022, I was told by the GG's office that a note was placed on my file to receive my medal at Rideau Hall from the Governor General. But here I am still waiting, five years after I was initially awarded the honour. </div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 34, 40); color: #1d2228; outline: none;">It's been extremely disappointing, I had hope that after a new Governor General was appointed, especially since it was one that is not white and the first indigenous one, that things would change. Unfortunately that hasn't seemed to be the case. I am extremely disappointed, disgusted and upset, for myself and everyone else who is in the same type of situation and dealing with this inequitable BS. All the diversity and equity promoting is just for show, it obviously doesn't really mean anything, which is very disheartening and increasingly despondent. It's just sad, one would expect better from Canada in 2023. </div></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(38, 40, 42); color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; outline: none;"><br /></div>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-9094346187622931192023-09-20T19:32:00.000-04:002023-09-20T19:32:11.268-04:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-44504086287585109542023-09-11T23:06:00.001-04:002023-09-11T23:06:56.738-04:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-27828859484028664582023-09-09T23:28:00.005-04:002024-02-07T21:34:56.069-05:00Flicker - new poetry collection PRE-ORDER NOW!<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-9iEm8UmyBYahiVbylMZ451y2UbzJqUXA9OkyVYhjtkhHgh9E1ZeU6rZMlC2l8V7OU3u1mWMsPyVJCwslvZ3zKXpLnGI9-1GW8DLc8PyHUUTvd6P9mi5fKJntFLYDCvaY-QS0TXTOUJWTJ6FUimtGeiLAgdBYkE1fWbLEoDZT9HaMCDcTXZ1QzsIoBgk_/s2700/Flicker%20cover.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="font-style: italic; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-9iEm8UmyBYahiVbylMZ451y2UbzJqUXA9OkyVYhjtkhHgh9E1ZeU6rZMlC2l8V7OU3u1mWMsPyVJCwslvZ3zKXpLnGI9-1GW8DLc8PyHUUTvd6P9mi5fKJntFLYDCvaY-QS0TXTOUJWTJ6FUimtGeiLAgdBYkE1fWbLEoDZT9HaMCDcTXZ1QzsIoBgk_/w133-h200/Flicker%20cover.jpeg" width="133" /></a><i>Flicker, </i>a brand new collection of poetry by Canadians from the Polar Expressions Publishing is now available for pre-order. I am excited to announce that my new poem, <i>Marauding of the Turtle</i> will be featured in this amazing book. </div></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This collection will be released and shipped in December, just in time for the holiday season. Pre-order your copy now exclusively from The Polar Expressions Publishing!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Order your copies now: <a href="http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop.html" target="_blank">http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop</a> </div>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-31781925071830771532023-09-09T23:28:00.004-04:002024-02-07T21:28:58.402-05:00The Path - new collection of short stories PRE-ORDER NOW!<p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVTv3v4lFlvEgQ0zNtl9gOjLy358_eDWpDWLdd3K1kR03EXnLqdbav62IOqgzSLTzcc_ptBG3pyLH4_zpypi7X9RlsvxLW-5qfiMTE0-_NV1Bl0AtyyBXnAGeq8xvFGZzn45jLP6EGcz4kmtGabXy2cCUAQ_wj6HgOuGg9tyo6LRP_LOaJ9XkQP-9MMm1/s1956/The%20Path%20cover.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1935" data-original-width="1956" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVTv3v4lFlvEgQ0zNtl9gOjLy358_eDWpDWLdd3K1kR03EXnLqdbav62IOqgzSLTzcc_ptBG3pyLH4_zpypi7X9RlsvxLW-5qfiMTE0-_NV1Bl0AtyyBXnAGeq8xvFGZzn45jLP6EGcz4kmtGabXy2cCUAQ_wj6HgOuGg9tyo6LRP_LOaJ9XkQP-9MMm1/w186-h249/The%20Path%20cover.jpeg" width="186" /></a></div><br /><i>The Path</i>, a brand new collection of short stories by Canadian from the Polar Expressions Publishing is now available for pre-order. I am also excited to announce that my new story, <i>Ocean Garbage</i> will be featured in this amazing book. </div><div><br /></div><div>This collection will be released and shipped in December, just in time for the holiday season. Pre-order your copy now exclusively from The Polar Expressions Publishing!</div><div><br /></div><div>Order your copies now: <a href="http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop.html" target="_blank">http://polarexpressions.ca/Shop</a></div>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-59813644549493919302023-06-09T23:16:00.006-04:002023-11-06T22:44:52.413-05:00TDSB Excellence Awards 2023<p>Yesterday I was so honoured and humbled to receive the TDSB Excellence Award for the second time in my career in education. I'm so proud to be a 2023 recipient! I am only the second person in history to have ever received this award twice. The first time I received it was back in <a href="https://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Excellence/Excellence-2017" target="_blank">2017</a> and I hold the record for being the youngest recipient ever, being 22 at the time I was first nominated. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTBZAe3cT__k-y6QOpzIX2u3PoHwMEfQEfZLHPNVBjqeuhNQVi5k-qyEFvTRJWtJrG5qaIuPTVITRyuvCFBwegt0EQCOD9iPvK-Ay6_j0MHKLOtBW8FjOOHJybldxYxSqFdhJPdDtIrIU8gNoaSMpPbddsR4HT77tHpviaQqdRllbKMAlU4M2HvGgDtPJS/s6000/IMG_0114.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6000" data-original-width="4000" height="471" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTBZAe3cT__k-y6QOpzIX2u3PoHwMEfQEfZLHPNVBjqeuhNQVi5k-qyEFvTRJWtJrG5qaIuPTVITRyuvCFBwegt0EQCOD9iPvK-Ay6_j0MHKLOtBW8FjOOHJybldxYxSqFdhJPdDtIrIU8gNoaSMpPbddsR4HT77tHpviaQqdRllbKMAlU4M2HvGgDtPJS/w313-h471/IMG_0114.JPG" width="313" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg56Gg3Re5FTWYq6iWfo1cSGKxm9gUyQHb43oMj7jDhZZQKCHyawyZxJ5RzXP1t4IKS9u7H1y_26psYXQy93B1og71a1FRJkUAf01K9lwyJk4hxh69z_4fpzwlq2CQLpYVtUHTQyTMfqmZ3xnB6pX83S7okrAvxTlGliM_sFwT3Eg7eyIqUb2RaSQYRKj7o/s6000/IMG_0110.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg56Gg3Re5FTWYq6iWfo1cSGKxm9gUyQHb43oMj7jDhZZQKCHyawyZxJ5RzXP1t4IKS9u7H1y_26psYXQy93B1og71a1FRJkUAf01K9lwyJk4hxh69z_4fpzwlq2CQLpYVtUHTQyTMfqmZ3xnB6pX83S7okrAvxTlGliM_sFwT3Eg7eyIqUb2RaSQYRKj7o/w454-h303/IMG_0110.JPG" width="454" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">The award's presentation ceremony was held yesterday evening at the TDSB's Forest Valley Outdoor Education Centre. I was honoured to once again be nominated by not only a friend and </span>colleague, but a former teacher. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYaqcOzQMSZ5EJNXZy13SY3tYxOuHkaVA-J6cQqoI1CZ17pORO0JQpUV3A1F5cZwsizC6JdGcbu2f2EAfUBwiXA6Malxe4g9HLEjHRf5I3s_Lz0aV5Wp0yUOvgJFYw_bxET_-u0nJVb9YPbrNfAE6d2g3NRauWneo7WpD2RBL03cgrzkIqRJyRKL3_5LtP/s6000/IMG_0108.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYaqcOzQMSZ5EJNXZy13SY3tYxOuHkaVA-J6cQqoI1CZ17pORO0JQpUV3A1F5cZwsizC6JdGcbu2f2EAfUBwiXA6Malxe4g9HLEjHRf5I3s_Lz0aV5Wp0yUOvgJFYw_bxET_-u0nJVb9YPbrNfAE6d2g3NRauWneo7WpD2RBL03cgrzkIqRJyRKL3_5LtP/w262-h174/IMG_0108.JPG" width="262" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNKcnXbKW7EzydOAcYIVQKmyVKGIMUuEFxuFpWI2QLgov-pQtF9no_LNxicEhZlUhQvGhtqXCBgPYojShVDIn0hgAJq-S1dDzc3MMEmfxKeT0wu7eNkLgvIsyXUilz0MosredUq5HhgWKXzDQXYtg77I8KlsPC0cLQP_WO0aZfjOtQ-B_I1AxGFYeSFzT/s6000/IMG_0111.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNKcnXbKW7EzydOAcYIVQKmyVKGIMUuEFxuFpWI2QLgov-pQtF9no_LNxicEhZlUhQvGhtqXCBgPYojShVDIn0hgAJq-S1dDzc3MMEmfxKeT0wu7eNkLgvIsyXUilz0MosredUq5HhgWKXzDQXYtg77I8KlsPC0cLQP_WO0aZfjOtQ-B_I1AxGFYeSFzT/w265-h176/IMG_0111.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqTGuBzgvIOAXueCjIOCpaeKA6lm7QsCSy_9HjgiokT2nQ2DlJppm0ySbY-_3pHBI9bS6TovZDx2M0FlEF_Ryk0QOxeq9TI7sucqO-c1yX0FXt3wVeW0bVfAWh4Z6YPkLsJ-plkrxcZDqsuYcfdJ5758Ptdwg-tvOklcdEdb2z2y-B4YCph5MVo8odvJmd/s6000/IMG_0112.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6000" data-original-width="4000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqTGuBzgvIOAXueCjIOCpaeKA6lm7QsCSy_9HjgiokT2nQ2DlJppm0ySbY-_3pHBI9bS6TovZDx2M0FlEF_Ryk0QOxeq9TI7sucqO-c1yX0FXt3wVeW0bVfAWh4Z6YPkLsJ-plkrxcZDqsuYcfdJ5758Ptdwg-tvOklcdEdb2z2y-B4YCph5MVo8odvJmd/s320/IMG_0112.JPG" width="213" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbU6DXLpPdNRphHzLngLQyd7-l1KBsE0z6VScKmAEQ_e4MQkKPDrpkaPaHVssMaOxrjYdzYBmHDltB_XMnUwF6HLwZ3UrufhQWEL5X1pftjh7C9W2z5XPVrxs-OLN3iqcaePV676SEOZUk689dOhohafkCXqcqAkv5QoPM1hd9Uq7tMCUvwo-kmPE9jYRK/s6000/IMG_0113.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6000" data-original-width="4000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbU6DXLpPdNRphHzLngLQyd7-l1KBsE0z6VScKmAEQ_e4MQkKPDrpkaPaHVssMaOxrjYdzYBmHDltB_XMnUwF6HLwZ3UrufhQWEL5X1pftjh7C9W2z5XPVrxs-OLN3iqcaePV676SEOZUk689dOhohafkCXqcqAkv5QoPM1hd9Uq7tMCUvwo-kmPE9jYRK/s320/IMG_0113.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbHevc-8o60rKxytN3aXPTDI-xSy3B02VTY2FEL8u25xkkihtAh95Wa6HcAdf1FhCgpzESl2Zz7G0hxtlxXplyEn0farWaq1hUUoRa7ubIBk8UxgFwwVmuhmOSJy5qDHFPsRpdkXgWnRxdpWuvKrwMK0L9MnMFjJ5qW6fnhM6NgTPRBlj_eCNGqb7YHe1c/s6000/IMG_0103.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbHevc-8o60rKxytN3aXPTDI-xSy3B02VTY2FEL8u25xkkihtAh95Wa6HcAdf1FhCgpzESl2Zz7G0hxtlxXplyEn0farWaq1hUUoRa7ubIBk8UxgFwwVmuhmOSJy5qDHFPsRpdkXgWnRxdpWuvKrwMK0L9MnMFjJ5qW6fnhM6NgTPRBlj_eCNGqb7YHe1c/w270-h180/IMG_0103.JPG" width="270" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjojFb7AKqSSz0zlWrEspcIW8yjc1LnX5rb1tNpNasD7xgI2laxQoQ0WynctQGed615FR4Yr-BVumG5zWFBQ40HjXDY_I0y-ykEaA37JsoPm-GPbioWRA8Nsk9CcWd4LBt8povxYk0I6eAME8Cmlgpc9NO0Hilbcp43QL05LFpuoG1YYvsgrgdoFNGEkh-n/s6000/IMG_0115.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjojFb7AKqSSz0zlWrEspcIW8yjc1LnX5rb1tNpNasD7xgI2laxQoQ0WynctQGed615FR4Yr-BVumG5zWFBQ40HjXDY_I0y-ykEaA37JsoPm-GPbioWRA8Nsk9CcWd4LBt8povxYk0I6eAME8Cmlgpc9NO0Hilbcp43QL05LFpuoG1YYvsgrgdoFNGEkh-n/w268-h179/IMG_0115.JPG" width="268" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To see more about the 2023 TDSB Excellence Awards winners check out the Excellence Awards page on the TDSB's website. <a href="https://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Excellence" target="_blank">https://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Excellence</a> </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8RXlWiX4omwM-Cf0IzYyMrYb6PPpd5xCTzWJhD_blThZMxgZfUaavtAROrbowvPZ1wtJmzqrQbdF7G1Y7W3AxJwCPDXR81YdwFoi_D7Ij9Dy_ueFZswDfA3q3XeeaMzpdwp4CrmCLM1cKEo2QxWunZDBzcoI5Bg-ismzSnLkL5sU6jueJSu1zPXjvucn/s6000/IMG_0116.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8RXlWiX4omwM-Cf0IzYyMrYb6PPpd5xCTzWJhD_blThZMxgZfUaavtAROrbowvPZ1wtJmzqrQbdF7G1Y7W3AxJwCPDXR81YdwFoi_D7Ij9Dy_ueFZswDfA3q3XeeaMzpdwp4CrmCLM1cKEo2QxWunZDBzcoI5Bg-ismzSnLkL5sU6jueJSu1zPXjvucn/w531-h354/IMG_0116.JPG" width="531" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div></div>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-7995638192718019692023-05-24T22:53:00.001-04:002023-05-24T22:53:16.510-04:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-11835830221868524332023-03-25T23:09:00.003-04:002023-03-25T23:09:56.186-04:00FHAVickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-89829565091118493842023-01-01T00:14:00.001-05:002023-01-01T00:14:48.911-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-48227057526084260622022-12-31T20:27:00.001-05:002022-12-31T20:27:44.380-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-48291752369893600952022-12-30T23:16:00.001-05:002022-12-30T23:16:13.048-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-81006278897359765042022-12-28T22:15:00.001-05:002022-12-28T22:15:24.071-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-51004626246769698992022-12-26T00:53:00.001-05:002022-12-26T00:53:15.680-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-69572903542188320182022-12-08T22:32:00.003-05:002022-12-08T22:32:18.583-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-29701432629744954232022-12-08T22:32:00.001-05:002022-12-08T22:32:12.131-05:00Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286456009651373925.post-48999950002149244962022-12-01T21:04:00.007-05:002024-02-07T22:13:11.849-05:00Where the Winds Blow - New Short Story Collection - Available NOW!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9r4_Wpzsbk4d8O0hnKIW7a-SHPWMPPc7YiKA3YTY_s4PhynsZJIji-A9CPPsiRmUqxIJg0PwuTKcRFzyRM7FjrohKjkS8ElWWWH2sulFED0d5qpNAGOT8zaL4XK58Cl40W4S_FicC3vu6ygfCvTF-NSSHMAzoL3DJJdfFXiRBFDlTaBLb7mKTQRYFcQQz/s2700/WheretheWindsBlowFrontCover.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9r4_Wpzsbk4d8O0hnKIW7a-SHPWMPPc7YiKA3YTY_s4PhynsZJIji-A9CPPsiRmUqxIJg0PwuTKcRFzyRM7FjrohKjkS8ElWWWH2sulFED0d5qpNAGOT8zaL4XK58Cl40W4S_FicC3vu6ygfCvTF-NSSHMAzoL3DJJdfFXiRBFDlTaBLb7mKTQRYFcQQz/s320/WheretheWindsBlowFrontCover.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>Vickram Bachan http://www.blogger.com/profile/15953147166551165708noreply@blogger.com