
At its root, tradition is the sharing of stories. Perhaps our oldest tradition is exactly that: storytelling. ...

My husband and I sometimes travelled with our kids when they were tiny. If we ever stayed in a motel, we would ...

An enlightening interview from our last issue led me down a rewarding rabbit trail. The conversation was an ...

Welcome to our ZEST issue, which has nothing to do with citrus fruit and everything to do with gusto, enjoyment, ...

Articles in this issue (my first as editor) feel like a love letter to our region. A testament to the vast melting ...

I first sensed how landscape affects us while studying writing at the University of Saskatchewan. The ...

INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIVING A LIFE:
PAY ATTENTION.
BE ASTONISHED.
TELL ABOUT IT.
– MARY OLIVER
In the ...

When LOVE was suggested as our summer theme, I jumped on it. I planned to write an inspiring intro that would ...

If you’ve ever spent time with a toddler, you’ll know they ask “Why?” about seven thousand times a day. When my ...

Everyone remembers the first time they met Thomas Dunn. He was a rare individual who made an impression—mostly ...

I’m so glad you’re here. As many readers know, each issue is part of a cycle with four linked themes.
COVID-19 ...

I began to write this letter on a rainy, blustery day in early November—possibly not the best time to reflect on ...

Early in 2020, our editorial team envisioned the general look and feel of the covers and themes for the year ...

When I wrote the last Editor’s Letter, things were still reasonably normal in the Comox Valley. But some time ...

Ah, spring. It’s the time when the light begins to spill over our valley again—a little longer every day—and the ...

Almost all the ancient civilizations identified four similar basic elements: earth, air, fire, and water. I ...

“I discovered mountain rivers late, for I was a prairie child… All I knew was that it was pure delight to be where ...

Storytelling originates underground. It’s the job of a writer to drag little known stories to the surface. ...

The rivers of the Comox Valley are made in the winter. All season long, drop by drop, the rain falls and they ...

I am a true introvert, my husband a true extrovert. Which means we spend a lot of time telling each other how ...

I don’t think I truly understood the word “bittersweet” before I became a mother. When I watch my son play with ...

Open. It brings to mind not one singular definition but a refusal of its opposites. Stubbornness. Inflexibility. A ...

In my 20s I was thrilled by the promise of a blank slate. I moved often, believing each new location was rich with ...

We live in an agriculturally rich region where traditions converge to create a sophisticated local food culture. ...
Words by
RJ Herron
Photos by
Amy Shaw

We have much to celebrate in the Comox Valley.
Aside from spectacular scenery and a host of ways to amuse ...

Each issue of this magazine is a journey of its own. It takes its first steps with simple ideas, drifts to making ...

This season, rivers and streams swell and grow like open hearts and minds, reminding us what we’ve left behind and ...
Vol. 10 Intro by
Julie Sabey
Photo by
Tim Ennis

As the light dims, we must find ways to fill our hearts, challenge our minds, and keep our bodies healthy. We turn ...

I love the way our mysterious and beautiful world works. At a time in my life when I am practicing being evermore ...

Many of us fear to take risks. Fear to surrender. Fear the outcome.
Although this life is altogether calm and ...

To make things happen, we connect. It’s the spark from these connections that makes us feel alive. I came to be ...

Our associations with the notion of inspiration are more fiction than fact, made evident by the familiar image of ...

Arguably one of the only constants that exist in our world is the reality that nothing is constant. Change itself ...

It can be defined as ability, force or potential. Some call it influence or pressure, others relate it to ...

Some say it’s simply where they grew up, the place they remember most or where they count most familiar. Others ...