Last Week’s Social Media Picks

Did you know that we have a presence on Social Media, too? You can find us on Instagram: Darlington Gallery; Facebook: Darlington Gallery, also as Elizabeth Campbell Books; and Blue Sky: Elizabeth Campbell Books. I hope you’ll visit us once in a while there, too!

Last week, we thought we’d start showing some of the stock we have that supports local and regional (Thunder Bay, ON west to Portage la Prairie, MB and north from the US border to Hudson Bay) people. Yes, that’s a huge area. Most of it is sparsely inhabited. Yet you’d be surprised how many of us know or know of each other, are related through family ties and bonds of friendship, or share other common ground. Sadly, the bonds between our economic communities are not as strong as they could and should be. Our resources are removed by multinationals and other large corporations. Most of the wealth of this area is distributed far further afield. Our communities, particularly those of the Indigenous peoples, are fighting their way to prosperity, but slowly. Our larger communities, too, are plagued with poverty and struggling economies. The rifts between those who have been here for centuries and those who are newcomers by comparison are slow to heal for as many reasons as there are people living here.

If you’ve never visited our brick and mortar shop, I do hope you will someday. As the proprietor, I have always tried to foster strong bonds between the members of the various communities I find myself a part of. This is a challenge sometimes, but I am always deeply rewarded when someone indicates that they find the shop an island in the storm of life, a place where they can come for a visit, sit on the floor and have a cuddle with the shop dog, tell stories, or just wend their way through the stacks and displays. Sometimes it is a just safe place for them to come. Sometimes they bring in beautiful handiwork/art to sell through the shop when their wallet is getting thin. Sometimes they bring in books for us to sell for local charities/causes. Sometimes they splurge on some of the items others have brought in, or on our own stock (We need to eat, too!). And over the last 34 years, I believe we have become a community hub at the very least.

Now it appears we’ve come to a time where life in Canada may become more challenging for a broader swath of our people. I can feel the tension and uncertainty in the air. I’m reminded of a neighbour who saw a cougar cross the TransCanada Pipeline next door to my home. He was hoping to catch sight of it again, so he waited a bit. The woods assumed an edgy quiet as the predator looked for its next meal. But just a few moments after it crossed, a whitetail doe and her two fawns very stealthily emerged from the woods the cougar had just entered, and slipped to the other side of the pipeline cut unnoticed. Our neighbour never saw the cougar again (I have yet to see one.). The deer remained fixtures in the neighbourhood.

Now is a time for us to look after our own – friends, neighbours, fellow citizens, and those taking shelter here from troubles elsewhere in the world. This will be our main focus at the bookshop and gallery for now. I hope you’ll join us online or in person, wherever you are in the world. You are always welcome!

Here is a little gallery of posts from last week, introducing you to some of our friends, artists and local causes through our stock: