By Katja De Bock Photos: Noriko Nasu-Tidball   When you hear her warm, soft voice speak in a confident tone, you wouldn’t guess the woman behind the mike describes herself as shy and suffering from anxiety and depression.   Sara Troy, who grew up in England, lived in South-Africa and travelled intensely before settling down in B.C. some 34 years ago, had to overcome asthma, chronic pain and fatigue from fibromyalgia, as well as a divorce before discovering what she truly loves – helping others gain self-esteem through radio.   “I am an abundant woman,” says Troy, and what she means is how her life was enriched by her predicament, but also by her talent to listen to the need of others – sharpened through years of work as a spiritual counselor.   “I feel the pain in life, the pain from others and how to take it on,” she says. “I can empower others to find their own solutions.” And if anyone asks how to do that, Troy has a witty reply: “Instead of saying ‘There’s an app for that, I say, there’s a show for that.’ ”   The show, that’s Ask Sara, a half-hour online radio show about issues such as hope, fear, regrets, or what makes a woman. The content is largely improvised in the studio. “Sometimes I don’t know what to do until I turn the mike on,” Troy says. “It’s whatever comes at that time.”   The show airs live Mondays, with repeats on Wednesdays and Fridays at 11 a.m. Pacific Time on Positive Living Vibration (PVL) Radio, the internet radio station she started in April 2013 with her producing partner Bill Mackie. They produce and broadcast from their Pitt Meadows home.   All shows, including those by...

By Katja De Bock Photos: Noriko Nasu-Tidball  When Tony Bulic is out on patrol canvassing Kerrisdale’s streets for suspicious activity, more often than not someone will come out and thank him for his work. That’s no surprise, really, as Bulic has been a well-known face in the community even before he took on the job of Executive Director of Kerrisdale Oakridge Marpole Community Policing Centre (KOM CPC).   Bulic, 40, was born and raised in Vancouver as the son of Croatian immigrants. As his father was a builder, the family moved around a few times, before settling in Kerrisdale, where Bulic visited Kerrisdale Elementary. He continued his education at Vancouver College and took a leadership course at BCIT.   Bulic says he has strong roots in Kerrisdale and was pleased to grow up in such a family-friendly environment with all the great amenities and parks.   “I don’t think there was a block in Kerrisdale that didn’t have 10, 15 kids when I was growing up,” he says. “It was a very positive, energizing place. We didn’t need fitness centres to get in shape, we just went outside and the kids were there.”   As a citizen of both Canada and Croatia, Bulic had to attend one year of military service in his ancestral country and left in 1998. It was after the Balkan war and just before the Kosovo crisis.   “It was a real honour to serve,” says Bulic, who speaks Croation fluently and stayed away from Vancouver for 1.5 years. “Croatia is a beautiful, peaceful country, part of NATO and the European Union. They are always looking to assist other countries on peace missions.” It’s this pride of the successful transition from war to peace and prosperity in Croatia that inspired...

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TINGA Tupper Integrated Neighbourhood Greenway Association (TINGA), the Greenway’s official non-profit organization, is always looking for more volunteers so consider getting involved! To learn more about the Tupper Greenway story, contact greenstreets@vancouver.ca or call 604-873-7204. http://tuppergreenway.com/our-story/tinga/       Green Streets Green Streets gardens are planted on traffic circles and corner bulges. The City pays for the initial planting. As a volunteer gardener, you will work with the City and your community to help the gardens grow during the year. You can simply weed and water, or choose to add your own personal touch by adding your favourite plants, providing more colour and interest through the changing seasons. Sign-up: http://vancouver.ca/home-property-development/green-streets-volunteer-application-form.aspx     Frisch Farms Are you interested in learning about gardening, agriculture, urban farming, vegetables, healthy eating, nutrition, Vancouver’s neighbourhoods and nature? Apply as an intern with Frisch Farms! http://frischfarmsvancouver.wordpress.com/2014-internships/       DIGA Can you help the Disabled Independent Gardeners Association? DIGA is a community-based not-for-profit organization that relies on support from individuals and organizations in all sectors.  Our volunteer program matches able-bodied gardeners with our members, to make gardening more accessible and achievable. http://www.disabilityfoundation.org/diga/volunteer_program.htm    Many more GREEN volunteering opportunities Here is a list of Vancouver-area organizations who rely on volunteer help from community members to make the city a better place for all of us to live. http://vancouver.ca/green-vancouver/green-volunteer-opportunities.aspx...

  Dear Readers, On March 8th, the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation remarked International Women’s Day to celebrate and acknowledge the 2014 Remarkable Women honourees who reflect the theme of the Year of Reconciliation. I was very humbled to be chosen and deeply grateful to the City of Vancouver and everyone who have so generously blessed me with their extraordinary gift as a loving human being.  It was an amazing and surely overwhelming experience. I feel that this award was not made to me as an individual, but to the true values of community, resilience, and innovation. I am very appreciative for this opportunity to share my passion for building a creative and caring community where we all celebrate our birth right as an artist. I am so grateful for the wisdom of my friends and colleagues who have opened their hearts and expressed their unique experiences from following their passion and intuition. In the March issue, I am pleased to present the stars of our community who make Vancouver a world city: a truly remarkable woman and environmental leader, Olivia Fermi whose grandfather, Nobel prize laureate Enrico Fermi was a physicist working at the heart of the top-secret effort to build the first atomic bombs, Rev. Jeremy who continues to expand our humanity through a community of acceptance, respect and support, and Debbra Mikaelsen and Philip Solman, the brilliant and gifted couple who put together thousands of interesting and dynamic pages of Edible Vancouver – my favourite magazine!    Thank you for the International Women’s Day 2014, which I will always remember.  Going forward, I will try to live up to the standard of excel­lence I know this award stands for.  Thank you very much.   Keiko Honda Editor-in-Chief  ...

 By Haley Cameron Photos by Rosanna Goncalves   When Debbra Mikaelsen, Editor-in-Chief of Edible Vancouver, was nominated for Best Local Advocate in B.C.’s first annual We Love Local awards last summer, she immediately requested the nomination credit the magazine instead. It’s this exact sort of humility that stands out when I sit down with her and husband/Publisher, Philip Solman, to learn more about the publication they’ve raised as their child over the past six years.   In the end Edible Vancouver was credited – and as winner of the category no less. Phil explains that their mission is ultimately to connect people who eat with people who produce and distribute food locally. While admittedly proud of the Best Local Advocate title, the approachable couple behind Edible Vancouver’s success avoids most public recognition. “We’re just not that interesting,” quips Debbra, as her partner explains that they’ve always wanted the brand to stand on its own. “We tend to shy away from the spotlight. We decided early on that there wouldn’t be any faces in the magazine,” he explains, and flipping through the beautiful Almost Spring 2014 issue I realize Debbra’s Editor’s Note is void of the expected headshot. “It’s not the Phil and Debbra show,” she says. But the pair agreed to share their own story in hopes of expanding knowledge of their product; one which has already achieved incredible growth since its 2007 naissance.   When the couple decided years ago that they wanted to work together, neither one was aware of the Edible Communities association that publishes numerous North American titles under the same ‘shop local, eat organic’ premise. Phil had been working with a non-profit society, We Are What We Do, when he was first exposed to the franchise. Through his non-profit...

      By Katja De Bock Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball   On July 16, 1945, an unprecedented explosion shattered the desert at the Trinity site, near Alamogordo New Mexico. Two months after the defeat of Nazi Germany, the Allies’ (USA, Great Britain and Canada) secret nuclear weapon development group, code-named the Manhattan Project, detonated a test nuclear weapon, nicknamed The Gadget. The detonation would go into history as the birth of the atomic age. Only weeks later, the bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki would mean the end of the Second World War, but also the death of hundreds of thousands of Japanese citizens and the destruction of two cities.     Olivia Fermi, a Vancouver-based counselor, coach and consultant, is intimately connected to The Manhattan Project: Her grandfather, Nobel prize laureate Enrico Fermi, was a physicist working with Robert Oppenheimer. He worked at the heart of the top-secret effort to build the first atomic bombs.   On March 3, 2014, Olivia Fermi will speak in Denver, Colorado at the American Physical Society, an organization of physicists worldwide. She was invited to speak specifically about the point of view of women related to the Manhattan Project. (Go to her Talk in Denver, CO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtuNtscCB5Y)   She decided to talk about two remarkable women whose connection to the Manhattan Project inspired them to respond and become community visionaries and leaders. They are Fermi’s grandmother Laura Fermi, wife of Enrico, and Los Alamos community leader Marian Naranjo.   For Kerrisdale Playbook, Olivia Fermi offers a sneak preview into her presentation.   Laura Fermi (1907-1977) – pioneering social and environmental leader   As a young girl, Olivia Fermi (who was born as Alice Olivia Weiner and later legally changed to her mother’s maiden name) grew up in a...

By Haley Cameron Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball Reverend Jeremy Clark-King, priest at St. Mary’s Anglican Church, barely hesitates when I ask if there’s a specific verse that inspires him on a daily basis. “The glory of God is a human being fully alive,” he recites, before admitting right away that it isn’t actually a biblical excerpt. The line comes instead from Saint Iraneus, a second century theologian. “John 10:10 is practically the same thing,” he offers, ready to provide the biblical version he knew I would be expecting. “I’ve come that you may have life, and have it abundantly.”   It strikes me as surprising that Rev. Jeremy’s first instinct isn’t a biblical reference, but I quickly learn to abandon all expectations when it comes to St. Mary’s. The century-old building that would appear in all ways conservatively traditional from the exterior proves to be impressively open-minded, progressive, and ultimately welcoming within its stained glass doors.   Perhaps this progressive nature shouldn’t be so unexpected. The Church of England acquired autonomy in the sixteenth century, when the country broke free of Papal association and instead combined Catholic and Protestant practices to produce a new branch of Christianity. A somewhat rebellious inauguration, this set the precedent for an opinionated religion that encouraged critical thinking and welcomed modernity. As Jeremy outlines, “We take the Bible seriously, but not literally. We learn from past successes and failures and place a high value on reason.”   As we spend some time covering the basics of the Anglican Church, for instance the correct terminology for Sunday congregations (service, Holy Eucharist, or Communion, he tells me), Rev. Jeremy mentions that one of the ministers on staff until recently is female. Female ordination isn’t the only surprise of this Christian offspring....

Welcome Speech by KCC Board President, Robert Lockhart  “Vancouver School Board representatives, performers, support workers, and guests: Welcome to the 2014 presentation of the Vancouver School Board SWIS Lunar New Year Festival in the year of the Horse.  Since 2010, Kerrisdale Community Centre Society along with Point Grey and David Thompson Secondary Schools has sponsored this VSB SWIS program. The show has grown from its first presentation in a small space in the Kerrisdale Seniors’ Centre, to fill our auditorium. Our society is proud to offer this venue that features the talents of so many young people from our community. If past performances are any indication, you will experience an afternoon of action, dance, singing, games and other multi-cultural festivities. This year for the first time, and in the true multicultural spirit of this community the descendants of the first inhabitants of this region will deliver an Aboriginal blessing on this festival. In the Chinese Zodiac, this is the year of the Horse. Those fortunate to be born in this year of the cycle make unremitting efforts to improve themselves. They are energetic, bright, warm-hearted, and able.  I believe you will also find that these characteristics also describe the performers you are about to see. Welcome, and thank you for participating in this annual event. Enjoy the show.” ~Robert Lockhart       Photos by Erik Price...

Dear Readers, I am delighted to introduce the new collection of articles, which challenge us to consider afresh what it means to give our best to what matters to us the most…those goals, relationships, and efforts. We intend to make “Kerrisdale Playbook” a regular publication and to use it to keep you in touch with news and developments happening in the community, while creating a platform for conversations and exploration. The launch of the “Kerrisdale Playbook” in January 2012 was a major step for the Kerrisdale Community Centre Society (KCCS) – as part of our first “online” community engagement effort! Looking back, I am impressed by the progress made in the last two full years. Something is shifting; real hope for strong social connections is starting to emerge! I am now much more confident of our ability to isolate what matters most and the means and motivation to give our best to that….. And we have learned a great deal about people bringing whatever they value the most to our society, such as passion, empathy, creativity, and community. Finally may I thank all of you who contribute to the “Kerrisdale Playbook” and to its fruition and beyond. I would also like to add my thanks to my team who is the energetic powerhouse behind the scenes.  I am keen to respond to the interests of our readers and look forward to your feedback and comments on our articles.  Happy readings and Happy Valentines’ Day!   Keiko Honda, Ph.D. Editor-in-Chief and Chair of Community Engagement, KCCS   February...

By Haley Cameron Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball   When I walked into The Arthritis Society Learning Centre in the Mary Pack Arthritis Centre, at West 10th Avenue and Laurel Street, I was met by two welcoming women who were more than happy to be at the office after hours for the opportunity to spread the word about their work. As an introduction to what that work entails, Linda Freisen, Health Education and Learning Centre Coordinator, opened a book to picture of a bed-bound young boy with unnaturally inflamed joints holding together a skeletal frame.   The MPAC began in 1945 as the vision of Mary Pack, an empathetic and innovative schoolteacher, Linda explained. The young Rheumatoid Arthritis victim depicted in Linda’s book was a student of Mary’s who inspired her to take on the cause singlehandedly 65 years ago. “Mary basically put on a uniform and went to battle for Arthritis,” Linda tells me. Joined by Joanna Li, Manager of Education and Services, the two ladies described how far we’ve already come in terms of managing the evasive disease. “Thanks to her we’ll never again see a case as bad as this,” Linda motions back towards the book. “Is there still a long way to go? Absolutely.” These days it is Linda, Joanna, their co-workers, and a mass of volunteers who don the same uniform and continue Mary’s fight.   When Mary Pack first took on this cause over half a century ago, there was very little support in place for those suffering from Arthritis. Without disability pension or medical coverage only marginal welfare existed to help those affected. Working with a team of local health care providers, Mary constructed a one-stop shop Arthritis patient program, which has since become an international model for...

By Haley Cameron Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball   When Georgia Youngs finds our indoor seclusion from the fiercely cold evening rain she is protectively bundled from the elements. But as she removes her big winter coat and knit toque she immediately begins to open up, as though unwrapping her story along with her winter layers. As our pre-amble winds down and Georgia takes off her fogging eyeglasses, she leans in to reassure me that she is a “good sharer”, as though confiding a secret. I quickly discover that Georgia’s willingness to share is anything but.   It’s difficult to narrow down Georgia’s career by definition. Artist, Art Teacher, Gallery Marketer, Curriculum Developer, Consultant; while being firmly entrenched in the fine arts field, Georgia’s numerous titles and trades seem to cover a little bit of everything. When I ask Georgia how she got her footing in the ever-changing industry of art she replies quite simply, “I just said yes to every opportunity that presented itself.”    As it turns out, Georgia’s career plan was not always fine arts focused. She describes her upbringing fondly, acknowledging that she is lucky to have come from a family that instilled a strong sense of confidence, but admits that her education was streamlined towards either a commercial or academic future. “You chose commercial if you were going to be a secretary, and you chose academic if you were going on to university,” she explains. Georgia chose the academic route, and became a paediatric nurse.   It wasn’t until her late twenties that Georgia found an art program with flexible hours that could accommodate her shift work as a nurse. As soon as she began the program, Georgia realized that this source of art was filling a hole in her...

By Katja De Bock   When Karen Lam walks by the Louisa Apartments on Kerrisdale’s East Boulevard, she laughs out loud remembering how she once almost set the building on fire trying to cook a meal. A highly educated Asian-Canadian from Manitoba with degrees in English literature and law, Lam never learned how to cook until she moved into her first Vancouver flat near Arbutus and West 41st Ave. That’s twenty years ago now and Lam has moved on to become an incessant cook, passionate tuque-knitter and oh, one of the world’s few female horror film directors. Her second feature, Evangeline, about an abused college student seeking to avenge her perpetrators, will open the Vancouver International Women in Film Festival(VIWIFF) on March 6. In 1993, Lam needed an inexpensive flat providing easy access to UBC. Kerrisdale was offered no distractions for the avid student. Squabbles with elderly neighbours about the central thermostat in the cellar of the apartment building were a daily routine.   Who knows if murder was on her mind in that dark Kerrisdale cellar, but creepy cellar-like torture chambers with devilish spirits are abundant in Evangeline, which was partly shot at UBC. The campus eerily made headlines for unsolved sexual assaults, which happened throughout 2013. The supernatural revenge fantasy deals with freshman Evangeline (Kat de Lieva), who is missing after hanging out with an enigmatic, violent fraternity leader (Richard Harmon) and his pals. Beaten and left for dead in the woods, Evangeline finds herself trapped in a supernatural nightmare, and starts a violent quest to avenge her perpetrators. In spite of a brutal storyline and mesmerizing visual effects, the film is not mere entertainment for the bloodthirsty. It asks the question whether it is better to turn the other cheek or...

By Dave Wheaton Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball   It’s sexy, fun, intelligent, and provocative. The RezErect exhibition at Bill Reid Gallery of North-West Coast Art is an exploration into erotica, something we tend to forget when thinking about Indigenous culture. But what does it take to make an exhibit like this possible? Beth Walters has been on the Board of the Bill Reid Gallery of North-West Coast Art since its beginning. She suggested we meet at the gallery on Hornby Street to experience it firsthand. We’re thrilled that we did. “This is an unusual gallery” – Beth   We start with a tour of the gallery, led by the co-curator of the current show, Kwiaahwah Jones.  RezErect is an amazing exhibit with a variety of pieces across a variety of mediums. The provocative theme of the exhibit is realized in so many ways; some artwork is funny, some is scandalous, some is empowering, and some rebellious.  Bill Reid Gallery is the first to host an exhibit of aboriginal erotica, earning the greatest response the gallery has seen. But most of the gallery’s shows are original concepts so Bill Reid Gallery is no stranger to this sort of venture. In the past, the gallery has hosted a show on Aboriginal humor and a show on textiles. Original ideas like these help Bill Reid Gallery stand out and appeal to all audiences. Emphasizing these unexplored aspects of coastal First Nations’ culture has defined Bill Reid Gallery as a cultural authority here in Vancouver. “Exhibitions such as this are like stories”, says Beth, “They open your mind and your heart to new ideas”.   While discussing Vancouver’s Bill Reid Gallery with Beth we also met the Executive Director of the gallery, Mike Robinson, who explained a little...

In my twenty-some-year career as a portrait photographer, I have photographed many faces of all ages — from new born babies to 95 year-old musician Dal Richards and every age group between.  I love photographing small children with their innocent expressions, and young people full of enthusiasm, and of course beautiful women with their perfect complexions. But my favorite subject remains mature people with their life history written on their faces.Someone said that we have faces we deserve. At some point, we can no longer hide who we are — it’s written all over our face. I have been lucky to be able to photograph these people — some of the most fabulous faces in our community. December 2013 Yukiko Onley ~~~~ Photographs courtesy of Yukiko Onley ~~~~ Nick Bantock, Painter, Author. Fred Harzog, Photographer. Rosemary Cunningham, writer. Takao Tanabe, painter. Marc Destrube, violinist. Martha Sturdy, designer.Kaneko Joko, painter.       Dal Richards, musician.   Arthur Erickson, architect.   Wayne Ngan, potter....

“A Sense of Place in History” An Interview with Brian Robertson Interview  by Espen Fikseaunet* Photos by Noriko Nasu-Tidball *Studying social anthropology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim and currently enrolled in the First Nation Studies at UBC   In the southernmost part of Dunbar, not too far from the Musqueam reserve, I meet with Brian Robertson. At the sound of the doorbell I open the door to find a very tall, middle aged man, dressed in semi-formal attire. Nothing about his style reveals the fact that he’s an artist –  nor, for that matter, do we have any telltale clues that he’s a historian and scientist. He reveals all that later on. As we exchange polite greetings the discussion soon moves on to Norway, the country where I’m from, and one of many countries that Brian has visited. Already he’s beginning to talk about some of his experiences and opinions, so we decide to move to the table where the conversation can be recorded. With maple tea and dark chocolate in front of us, we launch into the first question. – What led you into music? “Well, it’s one of those situations where I’ve kind of evolved into being a musician and a singer/songwriter. Playing music, much less creating and performing it, was not something I started until well into my life.” Brian goes on to explain how he loved dancing as a child, and how that prepared him for his musical endeavors later in life. Eventually he picked up the guitar and started singing in his late twenties. His main genre is Folk Music, possibly as a result of the strong tendency towards Folk in the 60s and 70s when he first started out as an artist. Some years after...

An Interview with Stuart Ward Interview by Raffi Wineburg Photographs courtesy of Hfour   Over eight million people watched live on Youtube, as on October 14, 2012, Austrian Skydiver Felix Baumgartner was lifted 39 kilometers into earth’s stratosphere by a 40 acre helium-filled dry cleaner bag, then promptly stepped out into space, free falling for over four minutes before parachuting safely to earth. When he deployed his chute, a camera focused intently on the corporate sponsor logo printed on top: Red Bull. Marketing and advertising are changing. Television ads, once the pinnacle of product promotion, are often used by consumers as bathroom breaks, or a channel flipping recess. Youtube and Facebook ads are mere annoyances, small blips in an otherwise unending stream of entertainment. More and more, companies—Red Bull being perhaps the most notable—are turning to experiential marketing—connecting consumers with a brand through a live interaction. Does sponsoring a free fall from space make consumers go out and purchase a case of Red Bull? Perhaps. Does it create a memorable and lasting impression with the brand? Undoubtedly. “It seems,” says Stuart Ward, founder of experiential design company Hfour, “that what people crave, are real experiences. And we can see that in marketing everywhere.” Hfour creates multi-sensory experiences to “solve design challenges and create marketing solutions.” A “multi-sensory experience” put simply, is art. Stuart instals live digital art displays at events to create branded art experiences. “We need new ways to engage people and I say, instead of being the advertising, be the entertainment,” said Stuart. “Be the content people want to watch, not the stuff on the side of your Facebook page.” Stuart’s job is to make just such content. His work is incredibly varied. Recently, he worked on a Vancouver Public Library Foundation fundraiser called...

An Invitation by artist Judith M. Atkinson   Interview by Katja De Bock Photographs courtesy of Judith M. Atkinson     In the 2006 memoir “Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia,” writer Elizabeth Gilbert chronicled her trip around the world after a nasty divorce. The 2010 film version with Julia Roberts emphasized the healing effect a prolonged stay in Italy can have can have on one’s soul. Remember how Julia Roberts gradually looked better after eating innumerable meals of great Italian food? Though she never refers to the book or the film, Port Moody artist Judith M. Atkinson has a similar happy look on her face when she speaks about her recent stay in Italy. Leading a Tuscany tour with a group of local arts students for Langara College last September has left Atkinson itching to do more work. “Art washes away the dust of everyday life,” Atkinson quotes one of her icons, Pablo Picasso. Getting re-inspired by visiting cities like Florence and Cortona, seeing great works by Etruscan, Roman, Renaissance and Baroque artists, as well as reflecting on golden-coloured landscapes and eating fantastic food, was achieved by the trip. Marilyn Bowman, a retired psychology professor at SFU, was one of the enrolled students. After three years of practicing arts at the Kerrisdale Community Centre with instructorGeorgia Youngs, she was eager to try a new painting experience. “It was a wonderful opportunity to try a few new techniques I’d never done before, like water colours and sketches,” she says. “Judith is a warm person. She really wants people to be happy,” Bowman adds. “As a teacher, she has a good eye of what is going to happen in a painting and where are the parts that need improvement.” Bowman returned...

    An Interview with Diane Switzer (VHF Executive Director) An Interview with Michael Kluckner (VHF Historian)      ...

“On Kindness” An Interview with Brock Tully By Katja De Bock Photos: Noriko Nasu-Tidball After cycling 50,000 kilometres through North America and organizing 12 major concerts, Brock Tully’s journey to his spiritual self is ongoing. The Vancouver peace activist and public speaker with the landmark moustache sat down with Kerrisdale Playbook editor-in-chief Keiko Honda and reporter Katja De Bock to speak about the world’s need for affection and his new book The Great Gift, a collection of reflections from the heart. The book launch was celebrated on October 28 with a Kindness Sings concert at Unity Theatre. The concert featured remarkable Canadian artists like Métis singer Andrea Menard and 14-year old Cole Armour, who both evoked standing ovations. “It’s unselfish to be selfish” Though he is keen on getting the word out about his books, Tully seems to be free from striving for material success. “My only goal, really, is to be connected to my heart,” Tully says. “That’s a full time job, because I lose connection all the time . . . What it means is to be selfish about doing what makes me happy.” His upbringing in a well-off, but emotionally cold West Vancouver family almost brought him down, before it enlightened him. As a young man, Tully struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts. However, he managed to fight his demons by cycling through North America three times, the first time in 1970, spreading the message of kindness. “Depression is really positive to me, because it is a signal to me that something is going on in my life that I need to look at,” Tully says, adding this applies to anger, too. “We avoid it, and become time bombs. Whereas I think anger is the connection to my deeper spiritual self.” “I don’t...