Reader's Digest Canada

taking action

(ROGER AZIZ)ONE OF THE THINGS Reader’s Digest values most—both in our story-telling and as a business—is treating others with kindness and dignity. As such, the magazine has a tradition of amplifying the voices of people who believe everyone is deserving of consideration. On the flip side, we are also committed to shining a light on injustice and instances of mistreatment. In this issue, we bring you an important story about elder abuse, “I Thought They Were Going to Kill Me” (page 76). The unsettling details of this case left me wondering how we can better care for those in vulnerable situations—and how they can also help themselves. Reaching out to local, elder-focused organizations is a good place to start. Here in Montreal, for example, the group Les Petits Frères matches socially…

contributors

(JAMES MAY)MARCELLO DI CINTIO(Writer, “Can We Save the Mountain Gorilla?” page 36)Home base: Calgary. Previously published in The New York Times and Canadian Geographic. I always knew that gorillas were genetically very close to humans, and so I understood that their medicine would resemble ours. But I didn’t realize how closely their behaviour mimics our own. We act the same. I find this strangely reassuring.MAY TRUONG(Photographer, “In Other Words,” page 60)Home base: Toronto. Previously published in Maclean’s and The New York Times. Years ago, I went on a six-week adventure through Europe. After some time in Berlin, I flew to Croatia. I hadn’t found a hotel prior to boarding. When I landed, I realized that no one spoke English, and I knew no Croatian; eventually a kind American couple helped. I’m not…

letters

A GOOD ENDI picked up the April 2018 Reader’s Digest today and just finished Catherine Porter’s piece, “The Love in Letting Go.” How beautifully written it was. I could barely hold back my tears at the end. If only we could all plan our deaths and our living wakes.My brother was recently in hospice care but too ill by the time I arrived for us to share any quality time before he died. I was touched to see patients at that hospice being taken out in their beds to the gardens. When I read about John Shield’s body lying in his own garden for two days after his death, I thought of them. I was so inspired that I will soon begin volunteering at a hospice in my city. Thank…

when i have a day to myself, i go…

…shopping! What else?DARLENE PRIMEAU-JONES, CORNWALL, ONT.…to my library branch to relax with a good book!JEEVANJOT DHILLON, BRAMPTON, ONT.…online to research my genealogy.ANITA PERRON, WINNIPEG…to a coffee shop. I introduce myself to anyone who’s sitting alone.ABDULLAH TANZEEM ANSARI, HAMILTON, ONT.…to play bingo.DOLORES MORIN, PRINCE GEORGE, B.C.…fishing along our local riverbanks.YULIA LISITSYNA, OTTAWAVisit the Reader’s Digest Canada Facebook page for your chance to finish the next sentence. ■…

karate for all

OWEN REID never gave much thought to karate. For one, the 35-year-old has cerebral palsy and needs a wheelchair to get around his home at Deer Park Villa, a care facility for people living with disabilities, in the town of Ituna, Sask.But his indifference to martial arts vanished in January of 2018, when he was asked to join a new initiative: a local named Brendan Breen was offering karate classes. During that first weekly class at Deer Park Villa, surrounded by a handful of other students, Reid was skeptical. Still, he quickly found himself drawn in by Breen’s enthusiasm. “He got me motivated to try it,” Reid said. Over time, the kata routine—a series of movements, like punches, lunges and jumps, against an imaginary opponent—was adapted so Reid could complete…

life’s like that

THE LATEST COMPUTER ANTI-THEFT DEVICE—AND IT’S FREE!(COURTESY OF CHELSEA LOCKWOOD)SPOTTED OUTSIDE a local bakery: a sign that read, “Parking for patrons only. All others will be toast.”BARBARA DOW, London, Ont.FINALLY SOME FREE TIME. Should I push the button on my phone that makes me feel bad about my career, the one that makes me feel bad about my body, or the one that makes me feel bad about the people I grew up with?@THENATEWOLFNOBLE CAUSEI’d like to teach the world to load the dishwasher.TABATHA SOUTHEY, writerI WENT TO THE HARDWARE store hoping to purchase a set of plastic drawers I’d seen listed in a sales flyer. When I entered the store a senior gentleman working there asked if he could help me.“Yes,” I said. “I’d like to see your drawers.”From…