Back in University, I had adopted the slogan “carpe nocht”.  Thinking I was being relatively clever with Horace’s quote “carpe diem” and the approach to life the phrase espouses, the idea of seizing the night became more than what I ever thought it would be.  You see, it was really just a way of justifying my desire to party all night long.

Little did I know that I would take it up as a mantra, and have it end up being a metaphor for my life.

You see, to me, December 21 is not the longest night of 2013.  Sure, scientists will talk to you about the winter solstice, and they’d be right.  But other nights in 2013 have been far longer.

The night following my wife’s diagnosis with pericarditis.  That was a bloody long night.

The night after we discovered the piano component of the High River and District Lions Music Festival had a significant scheduling flaw, and I had to review and reschedule 250 entries.  That was a very long night.

The night I discovered that I was no longer part of a profession that the Alberta Government was willing to negotiate with.  That was a very long night.

One of the longest nights of the year was June 20, a night I spent until 2 AM in the Blackie evacuation centre following one of the most significant events in Canadian history, the 2013 flood.  What made it longer was the hour and a half drive to my parents’ place in the dark, wondering what Waterworld looked like.  And the thing that made it even longer yet … the dreams I finally had once I did get to a safe and warm bed.

The first night sleeping in my bed in my home in dank- and dead-smelling High River thinking about the thousands who still had no idea when they’d be returning home.  That was an incredibly long night.

The night after a massive hailstorm that almost wrote off my car trying to convince my boys they were safe in our home.  That was a long night.

The night I learned I had no classroom, and realized I wouldn’t for weeks, maybe months.  That was a long night.

The night after a meeting with business people in High River where I learned that one of our more prominent businesses was struggling to make even a tenth of their regular income, 5 months after the flood.  That was a long night.

No, December 21 is not a long night.  Not even after an intense day of Christmas shopping is December 21 a long night.  It does not compare to the Dylan Thomas kind of nights that we avoided going gently into this year.

But through my “carpe nocht” philosophy comes one realization; after each one of these nights came a day.  Each day brought new rays of sunshine, new hope.

These days came because we wouldn’t go gently into that good night.  My wife was very diligent in her recovery from her heart condition.  I rescheduled the piano classes and made everything work for the festival.  Teachers kept teaching.  I helped wherever I could after the flood.  My family, and many other families, worked tirelessly to clean up homes so people could return, and others who haven’t yet are still working hard to do the same.  I found a hall to teach in while I waited for a classroom.  Business people of High River are not hoping for handouts, they are working to return to success.  Even our boys got involved in High River's recovery.  In each case, we are all working to see a brighter day.

Then, perhaps after we’ve seized the opportunity that night has given us, we can then seize the day.

So, in this season of hope, I look back at 2013 as a very long night.  And 2014 is going to be a very bright day.  I know this, because it starts with my brother marrying a wonderful young lady, and the beginning of a new life together brings with it hope for the future.

I wish all of you for whom 2013 was a long night to seize the night and the opportunities it presents.  Don’t go quietly into it.  Then, having seized the opportunities, may the future days be yours to take.

Carpe nocht et carpe diem.

This message appeared in the program of the High River and District Lions Music Festival in 2013.

Dear Arts Advocates,

We are pleased you have joined us for this year’s High River and District Lions Music Festival.  We are so pleased to be surrounded by so many passionate musicians, parents, teachers and advocates.  Through an event such as this, it becomes quite obvious the value music has in our society and in our lives.

Thank you to the parents and teachers who advocate for their students so vehemently.  Thank you to the students, for refining your craft and sharing it with us, and for inspiring not only those who follow you, but also those who lead you.  Thank you to the solid foundation of volunteers who organized this festival and made it happen.  Thank you to the Sponsors who put their money where their heart is and by doing so make our Arts community stronger for it.  Perhaps most especially, thank you to the members of our audience, the receptors of our musical communication, for being the most basic and necessary form of Arts Advocates.

True profit in Arts and Culture is not measured in dollars, euros or yen.  It in fact is immeasurable, although its effects can easily be seen in the eyes of every student, teacher or parent who has been exposed to it.  Those who cannot package that experience and sell it have a difficult time understanding what electrifies us.  Yet we press on, knowing that intrinsic value is not always meant to be understood, just experienced.

Music itself is temporal.  Truly emotive music must be performed and experienced; no digital device can emote and express the way a living and breathing musician and audience member can.  With our High River and District Lions Music Festival, we see how that happens in each performance.  It is for this reason we work so hard to produce this festival, to continue to see that every year, and be inspired by it.

It should be noted that we are in desperate need of Arts Advocates, who are willing to put their time where their values already reside.  Our Board is in need of extra support, as in its current state, our Festival organization is not sustainable, and we so desperately want it to be so to the benefit of our young musicians.  As John F. Kennedy said over 50 years ago, “to further the appreciation of culture among all the people, to increase respect for the creative individual, to widen participation by all the processes and fulfillments of art – this is one of the fascinating challenges of these days”.  We ask that you seriously consider helping us take this challenge on.  We need teachers, parents and supporters, young or old, to take this challenge on.  We need you.

Please consider joining us as we seek to provide venue for the inspiration our young musicians offer.  Your life, and ours, will be enriched by your efforts, and you will make a real and lasting impact on the lives of our young musicians as well.

Thank you once again for supporting young musicians simply with your presence, and please continue to share with all those around you how rich you truly are because you have music.

Contrapuntally yours,
Joel Windsor