Gord Downie

Like so many Canadians, I've been feeling the sucker punch of the news of Gord Downie's brain cancer prognosis.  For those of you who aren't Canadian, he's the frontman, poet, towering creative powerhouse of The Tragically Hip, a much beloved Canadian rock and roll band.  There's been a number of defining moments in music for me over the years and one would have to be hearing The Hip's "Nautical Disaster" for the first time.  The dissecting instinct of a music critic and the microscope of literary analysis were thrown out as soon as I heard the first lines of the song, "I had this dream where I relished the fray..."  You just know instantly he and the band are onto something primal and wonderful.  I want to say a deep thank you to Gord Downie for unleashing an unfiltred joy in all of your creative work.  You've made it a little easier for the rest of us to live inside our imaginations without apology.  Thank you for your humility and humanity.  Peace and courage.  Grace too.

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