Tag Archives: hope

Aging, Boys, Christianity, christmas, God, home learning, teaching, Wordsmith

Be Losing Your Dreams

December 23, 2023 Be Enough 4 Comments

I have started dreaming again.

When the world shut down in 2020, I was in a place where many of my dreams got shut down too.

It hurt more than I realized at the time.

Fulfilling a dream to take our family to Japan.

Achieving a dream of finishing a 3.8km swim, 180km bike ride and 42km marathon run (Ironman triathlon) that I had spent two years training for.

Living the dream of being surrounded by likeminded, healthy individuals who loved to workout, but couldn’t as the fitness centres and pools were shut down.

On top of losing these dreams, I have now fully realized that I had lost hope.

I lost hope for a future for our boys in a world that was moving towards kindness, peace and acceptance. Instead I saw and personally experienced polarization, judgement, discrimination and all out war in families and in the world.

As I end 2023, I can fully say that my hope and dreams have returned amongst the polarization, judgement, discrimination and wars around the world.

My dreams now exist more within me and our family.

I love living the dream of being able to have our three boys learn at home for the fifth year.

I love planning our summer adventures: Our third trip to the Yukon and our sixth Cann-Sharpe Adventure with friends.

I love my new calling working alongside 15 wonderful, inspiring teachers that support over 450 northern British Columbia home learning students. This group of people are the most heartfelt, insightful, hardworking group of educators that I have ever had the privilege to work with in my over twenty years in education.

I love simply feeling hopeful.

Hopeful because of the love and care I see around me through our friends and my work.

Hopeful that God is working everything out in His timing.

Let go and let God.

Hopeful of the uprising I see of saints who love people and want to show up louder, with this cloak of love, despite the hurts and harm they have experienced in their lives.

I love dreaming again.

Dreaming about what physical feat I will move towards next.

Dreaming about who my boys are becoming and who they want to be.

Dreaming about how I can show more love and care to those around me as I move through my own healing journey.

Love truly conquers all and is the greatest power in our world that brings hope and dreams into the hearts of all who choose.

More love.

More hope.

More dreams.

Bring on 2024.

Have an epic Christmas and end of the year folks and love what you do!

Xoxo Joanna

radical sabbatical

Be Writing a Christmas Letter 2023

December 20, 2023 Be Enough 4 Comments

I have ALWAYS sent out Christmas cards. I love the physical act of looking for and purchasing special cards plus writing a personal note as I think of the friend that I am sending the card to.

This year, I was inspired by my friend, Rae Swire, to write a Christmas letter. Last year, I really appreciated reading the update on her family and the highlight from her year. I believe that everyone has received theirs in the mail now, so here goes the digital Christmas letter.

Drum roll…. the first ever Cann family Christmas letter! I pray it brings connections and community through what I chose to share.

Merry Christmas 2023

Family ~ Change ~ Fun

These are our words from this year! We have made changes to create more family fun time and we are reaping the benefits as we finish off the year. We continue to love spending winter weekends at our Apex ski condo overlooking the t-bar, summertime around the background pool as well as time golfing, biking and horseback riding at a trailer we inherited from Steve’s family that is on the sixth hole of the golf course at “The Ranch”. With the age of the boys, we feel grateful to have found the perfect balance of activity and leisure time. We enjoyed a fifth summer hiking adventure with our good friend’s, the Sharpe’s, who have kids the exact same age. Both Steve and I moved into new jobs this summer. We were devastated by the wildfires in our city, which burned down the church camp the boys have been attending the last few years. In the fall, we enjoyed a 3 day trip to Disneyland and clocked over 70,000 steps and went on over 50 rides!

Family Update:

Steve – continues to love backcountry skiing, the Canucks, spending time with the family and is now coaching U14 Club volleyball. After spending time in International Educational since 2004, Steve resigned from his position in Kelowna and now works up the road as a Vice Principal at North Glenmore Elementary School. He even has a song about “Mr. Cann”. Steve took his last International work trips to Germany, Halifax and Thailand last spring. He dearly misses this calling, but is enjoying this season at home and working on his health.
Joanna – I am in my fifth year homeschooling the boys and I love every second being able to design their learning. I added on a new role to my work with Heritage Christian Online School and I am now the Regional Administrator for the north overseeing 15 teachers and 400+ students north of 100 Mile. I had the opportunity to do a northern road trip with Colby and Owen for work in October. It’s been a dream come true! With the busyness of all the boys, health has taken a bit of a backseat, but we have joined a gym so that we workout regularly now and we are loving ski season, both alpine and nordic.
JC (Grade 11) – attends school at Kelowna Secondary part time doing Math, Science and electives plus HCOS doing online English, SS and other electives he can’t get at the campus school. He played ultimate frisbee at KSS and got his Learner’s license in April. Since starting Trampoline gymnastics two years ago, Jackson has had incredible success. He competes in all three events: trampoline, double mini and tumbling. In July, he qualified and competed in his first Nationals, which was held at the UofA. He stayed in my old residence at Lister Hall and competed in the Butterdome. This year, his goal is to qualify for his first International competition. In Jackson’s free time he loves making movies, refereeing soccer and hanging out with his brothers.
CC (Grade 9) – currently has many diverse interesting including: spearfishing, F1, racing go-carts and doing taekwondo. Colby is two belts away from being able to test for his black belt. He competed in Trail, Salmon Arm and SFU. This year, Colby started his journey with braces, refereeing soccer, found a wonderful Youth Group, finished his red cross swim lessons and continues to work with his voice teacher, Janel, to write his second album. Colby sang a song live on the radio and got his first stitches in a ski crash! Colby continues to learn at home, but this year he is attending a one day class that covers Science and Social Studies.
OC (Grade 7) – loves Lego building, Star Wars, RCMP, dogs, playing with his brothers, skiing and soccer. This year, he also tried taekwondo and is playing Club volleyball for the first time. He also decided to start playing the trumpet and takes weekly lessons. Owen also loves learning at home and attends a one day in-person class.

In 2024,

This summer, we are excited to be taking a trip to the Yukon with our new-to-us 16 foot Hybrid Cubs trailer. Both Jackson and Colby will be in high school. We don’t foresee any work or school changes, other than that!

As we move into this new year, we pray that this letter finds you full of hope, peace and love! As the boys grow older, we truly see how precious each day (and year) is and are really living each day to the fullest! We are grateful for your friendship in this world we live in.

Xoxo Joanna + the blue crew.

Sidenote: This is post 48 of 50 for 2023… Eeeek, I am going to reach my goal of writing 50 posts this year. Thanks for coming along on the ride.

blogger, homeschooling, school, teaching, Wordsmith

Be Praying for Yourself

June 10, 2023 Be Enough 7 Comments

When I started praying for the leadership of our school two years ago, I never knew that I would end up praying for myself.

On the post-it-note on my computer monitor I wrote:

🙏🏻 Wisdom

🙏🏻 Hope

🙏🏻 God to fill in the gap

🙏🏻 Encouragement/Strength

🤩 JOY

(Those that know me know that I LOVE post-it-notes.)

Yesterday, it became public knowledge that I will be starting a new job this summer. I will be the HCOS Regional Administrator for the NORTH! (Kind of like a Vice Principal in the campus system, but different because I teach and work in the virtual world of home learning.)

Yes, you heard it and no, we aren’t moving. I will be supporting and serving the teachers and families working and living in the north from our house here in KCity, but then travelling up north a few times per year for meetings and events. This northern girl will have part of her heart back in the north because of her beautiful work!

Who loves a good northern road trip? MEEEEEEEEE!

Williams Lake, Prince George, Tumbler Ridge, Burns Lake, Terrace, Dawson Creek, Fort St. John and wherever else I am lead to go… watch out, I am coming for a visit and most likely bringing the boys too! Isn’t it cool that I can bring my boys to work as well. My school truly loves and support families, including my own.

This is really the best of learning and teaching in all ways!

New job coming soon: August 1st, 2023

Have a super duper uper Saturday and love what you do.

xoxo Joanna

author, women, words, Wordsmith

Be Observing International Women’s Day

March 9, 2019 Be Enough Leave a comment

What is a better what to observe and notice International Women’s Day than with words and photos.

This wordsmithing woman threw together some words and founds some pics to show you the faces of the inspiring woman surrounding me.

May the women around you stand by you.

Lift you up.

Hold you up.

Pray you up.

And never stand you up.

The woman in my life that is ALWAYS very present was my Mama.

She made me a better mom to my boys, a more thoughtful friend, a more forgiving wife and always helped me to get over my temper tantrums.

I am grateful for all the women in my life.

If you are the sum of the people you surround yourself with, I am kick *ss.

These are the women in my life.

The ones that truly care and you know that they are there.

Ones that help you with your babies and your business.

Those who nurture your mind, heart and spirit.

Women that help you grow, that you may not even have in a photo. 😉

Thank you to all you wonderful women!

😘 Joanna

christmas, encouragement, God, Grief, Parenting, philosophy

Be Keeping SH*T Real

December 14, 2018 Be Enough Leave a comment

There is a pervasive message in our culture that is saying “stay positive”, “think positive”, shift your mindset to be more positive and everything will be AWESOME!

Those that know me, know that I do have a positive mindset, but I did not, I repeat, I DID NOT, get there by being positive all the flipping time.

Let me tell you a little story about these three geniuses above:

My boys were 7,4 and 2 years old when my mom was dying. This grief experience would become the greatest gift that our family has been given! Plus, isn’t it amazing to know that we all having the incredible Nana waiting for us in heaven. When we were given this gift of grief, I spoke with my counselor, a tremendous amount, about how we grieve as human beings She taught me, and my children showed me, that the very best grievers are actually children. What they do is feel things very deeply, stay in each moment and move in and out of grief very quickly. This was exactly our experience. They would see or remember something from Nana, wham, the tears would come. Then they would see their favourite LEGO and wham, they are smiling and playing again. My counselor taught me that the best thing I could do for them, and myself, was to sit with them in their grief, feel things with them and wait for them to shift or helps them slowing shift after being present with them. Rarely, did I need to do anything but merely sit and be present with them.

Imagine this same grief journey, if I constantly put on a positive face, ignored their feelings and told them to be positive. “Just be positive” said over and over and over again. In a child’s world, this would be completely invalidating their feelings and not give them the permission to feel or grieve. I wonder what counselling they would need later in life to get over not feeling the feelings they had during this time?

This year is going to be our fifth Christmas without my marvellous mama and I must admit that I have become an expert at negotiating grief. I sit with myself. I feel things deeply and then gently move myself when I know I am ready. I cried in the pool this morning while swimming lengths. I feel the feelings, I let the tears flow.

I am blessed because I can now see and sense this grief process working in others and I easily give them space to move through the process. We do this often with relationships, situations, and even with our food. I can see people giving themselves lashes for not being positive enough or at all. I can see people trying so hard.

This brings me back to the positive rah rah that is overpowering our culture. I WANT TO BE A PERMISSION BEARER. As I observe and grow a business in this culture of a constant positivity, my message has clearly become “keep sh*t real”. The more honest my customers can be with me, the more I can walk with them. The more we can sit with each other in the real sh*t that exists in this world, the more we can move each other into positive places. We have to sit together, listen together and then move!

Feel the feels.

Sit in them.

Then look, seek and find solutions and that positive place.

When you look around and feel like sh*t because you aren’t positive enough, pretty enough, doing enough or…. <insert what it is for you here>… keep it real and sit with your sh*t. And realise that when I look around and see the pervasive positivism overwhelming my feed, it’s usually being put out into the world by men, young couples or empty nesters. You don’t often seen mom’s waking up to puking kids or having to put every single thing they had planned that day on hold because of a child with a fever, spewing the positivity message 24/7.

It’s about keeping sh*t real. Finding a way to keep taking one step forward every day towards where you want to go. Surrounding yourself with people who will cheer you on and be positive even when you have spit up on your shoulder and haven’t combed your hair. Find that tribe that keep things real and can be positive when you can’t be.

If you aren’t feeling that you are good enough, positive enough or that you are doing enough, STOP that sh*t. Remember my lessons from grief that my boys taught me.

God has given you many talents that you may not be able to see right now.

That’s okay.

God is taking you through a season that is going to give you great strength.

That’s amazing.

God is going to reveal everything to you in EXACTLY the right time.

That’s incredible.

BUT, life isn’t always okay, amazing or incredible.

But you “Cann”:

Always hold hope.

Always brings peace.

Always hold love.

Always keep sh*t real.

Even when the positivity police try to overtake you.

Learn from my greatest teachers, my boys, in this upcoming season.

Sit exactly where you are.

Feel things deeply.

Move when you are ready.

Always hold hope.

Always bring peace.

Always hold love.

Always keep sh*t real.

😘 Joanna Cann

author, blogger, encouragement, Family, God, love, psychology

Be Searching for Something

March 24, 2017 Be Enough Leave a comment

As I sit watching the sunset, I ponder that ‘something’ I search for. That ‘something’ that will fill feelings of grief, sadness and overwhelm.

That space that I try to fill every time I open my phone to check Facebook.

The hole I avoid when I run away from what I am feeling.

The darkness I turn from every time I sit in numbness, not wanting to feel, not wanting to go down old trodden paths of pain.

But sometimes life doesn’t give us a chance to avoid.

It allows us the privilege to sit up, to notice, to see our grief journey clearly and how much pain we have turned into gratitude.

This search for something that is really nothing outside of us at all.

We can’t avoid living life and why would we want to.

The privilege to be with our people, to see into the eyes of their souls and to get to know them on a deeper level.

Yes, Facebook could do that.

Walking away could help us reflect.

And that darkness I talked about, well, that only helps us see the brightness of the light.

See, I have learned to let go of my sense of judgement as things are neither good nor bad, they just are. I have also learned to be present with what I am feeling, as these feelings are neither good nor bad, as well, they just are!

So, as you search for that ‘something’ today may you first look within your soul, your beautiful unique self sitting within you. Resting in your spirit.

Being you!

Then may you look around you at those imperfectly perfect people around you. Building Knex, asking about the birds and the bees, reading books, playing with pillows… are what my people are currently doing.

Being them!

Search for that something that is already within you.

Beautiful.

Imperfectly perfect.

Neither good nor bad.

Just being.

Full of strength.

Overflowing with hope.

Sitting in the presence of His peace.

Knowing you are loved.

Searching for nothing.

Found!

*written for a special person in our life on this significant ‘something’ kind of day!

author, Christianity, encouragement, God, Jesus Christ, philosophy

Be Finding Forward

February 8, 2017 Be Enough Leave a comment

Forward.

Moving not backwards.

Forwards.

Moving in a direction.

Which one will we choose?

Moving from the west to the east.

Finding the dance that takes you forward.

Into your dreams.

Into your spirit.

Into your spidey sense.

Presence.

How does one stay present?

Moving forward?

This is what I have learned and this is what propels me forward.

Taking peeks into the tiny, narrow, rear view mirror to pour gratitude into where I came from.

Gratitude.

Love.

Letting go.

Looking straight-forward into my large, expansive windshield watching the exciting places I am going.

Joy.

Peace.

Light.

Eyes, wide open, looking for the gold thread of hope woven throughout my day.

Holding my empty hands of faith.

God’s goodness poured out over all our lives.

Into my hands.

Will we choose to look for it?

Will we choose to have open hands to receive it?

Moving forwards.

Dancing the dance of my life.

Trusting.

Fun.

Faith.

Forward.

Smooch, Joanna

author, Christianity, encouragement, mindset, Self-help

Be Hope

January 30, 2017 Be Enough 1 Comment

Hopelessness is a paralyzingly dis-ease. I have felt it in the core of my being, the deep down dusty place that seems hard to reach. Hopeless that circumstances will change. Hopeless knowing death brings physical disconnection. Hopeless knowing that I may no longer be the same.

But, I stand and lie down today knowing that this did-ease called hopelessness can be overcome. Our circumstance we absolutely cannot control, even though I thought I could, BUT we can control our conclusions about these circumstances.

One wintery day, only two months after my mom died, I make a conclusion that only great goodness would come from the gift of grief I received from her death. I decided that I would live in a negativity fast and a positivity feast, as Steve and Wendy Backlund describe it. Guess what happened? The last three years have been a walk in greatness. I have found my passion that melds my teaching brain, coaching mindset and mother’s heart. I have found my meaning and my passion for how I can be a permission for hope no matter your circumstances. Through great nutrition, an ever growing mindset and being able to learn new truths about myself every day through the circumstances around me, I have found hope and freedom!

Hope replacing dis-ease.

Hope in any circumstances.

Hope overflowing.

Hope pouring.

Over me.

Through me.

Hope.

"Be" ENOUGH