Jasper in our hearts

August 16 2024

Today the people of Jasper start their journey home. Our hearts go out to them.

Thinking of the people in much-loved Jasper makes me think of our own return home after wildfires devastated Slave Lake in 2011. You see the photos and hear the descriptions,but nothing really can prepare you for what you are about to see.

When our family returned to our house, there was silence in the car. As we drove through the once familiar streets, now devoid of the landmarks that once defined them, it was heart wrenching. The homes of our friends and neighbours- homes that were once their sanctuaries from the world, full of mementos and memories and dreams for a future life they could no longer live-now reduced to a pile of ash. Neighbourhoods that once rang with the sounds of children playing were now a wasteland of rusting car bodies, the blackened skeletons of trees, and piles of rubble jumbled up behind miles of fencing. The randomness. The injustice. For those who didn't lose their homes, an odd feeling of survivor guilt. But mostly, just an intense and overwhelming feeling of loss. 

The days and weeks that followed our return were strange. We tried to think of what we could DO to help. Every one of our son’s friends lost their homes. That summer, our basement was full of teenage boys. We started gathering stories for a book. We did a lot of listening.

So much loss., But also a kind of strength comes from living through a shared disaster. Jasperites might not see it yet, but they will. They will see it in the faces of their neighbours as they come together to grieve. They will hear it in the voices of their friends as they express their anger and frustration, and again, as they tell of their determination to rebuild. They will hear it in the stories they share with total strangers. They will feel it in the support from people all over the country through their fundraisers and donations and their emotional support. They will find themselves doing things they had never considered doing before, and they will think nothing of it, because they have already lived through the unthinkable. Anything is possible now.

A forest needs a wildfire to regenerate. The old needs to burn away to make room for the new. We know that some species only thrive in the aftermath of fire, while others benefit from new growth. Some trees need extreme heat to release their seeds. Others regrow from their roots. Wildfires release nutrients to the soil and increased sunlight allows pioneer species to recolonize. While a town doesn’t need a disaster to thrive, a disaster can lead to a kind of rebirth. It can lead to a re-evaluation of what you really need to make your town be its best self. That involves not only resilience and practical skills but also new ways of thinking - maybe qualities you already had that have just been waiting for you to need them. The regeneration of your community might also include some people leaving because the environment doesn't give them what they need, and new people coming forward who thrive in the regrowth. The seeds for that rebirth have been buried for years, just waiting to be released. They are there now, under the ash. You cannot see them, but the green shoots are already climbing upwards towards the light. 

We wish you well in your journey, Jasper.

New growth emerging from the ashes,

Devonshire Beach, Slave Lake. June 2011