For most of my life, things in the larger world seemed quite certain and slow to change. Today, it seems that reliable, solid ground is slipping away, sometimes quite suddenly.

The first example that comes to mind is Canada-U.S. relations. We’ve always been best friends, peaceful neighbours who help each other out when needed.

About 20 years ago, I was a Girl Guide leader, and every year we took the Brownies (now known as Embers) and Guides to Peace Arch Park for an event called Hands Across the Border , where Guides and Scouts from both countries gathered in the park that straddles the border to trade gifts showing the friendship between the two countries. It started in 1921 but is no more. At least not in 2025.

Like many Canadians, Girl Guides of Canada has suspended all travel to

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