Quarantine Diary #131 7/23/2020 "Becoming Labrador"

Yesterday I forgot to write about a movie we watched which I think many of you might like to watch, also.  We’ve been talking here about what one can stand to read and watch these days when our spirits are stressed and anxious.

I thought I wanted to reprise some of our Canada travels.  FYI, if you’ve traveled in a place you loved, put that place into your streaming service Search window, find some great or mediocre documentaries about that place, and revisit your memories.  It’s fun.

Anyways, that was what I was doing when I was too comfortable to clean up after supper. I was looking for things about Canada.

This popped up: Becoming Labrador   https://www.nfb.ca/film/becoming-labrador/  

I assumed it would be an exploration of a stark and wild topography, so I started it. Within minutes both Len and I were invested in this powerful, unlikely story.

“In the stark Labrador interior, a growing number of Filipino workers have recently landed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, travelling halfway around the world for jobs they hope will offer their families new opportunities and a better life. Becoming Labrador follows a handful of those women and men as they make a place for themselves in Labrador while dealing with the unexpected costs of living far from their family.”

There were moments when I had tears in my eyes at the courage and poignancy of these immigrants.  What a powerful story of the dignity and faith of people who love their families so much they will leave them to build a better future. 

Nothing horrible happens.  People end up with their families.  By the time it was over, I felt grateful and reassured that humans can be and so often are amazing.

We had a minister in Chicago who said, “Immigrants are the ones who hold up the American Dream.” (Yes, Canada, the US, and Mexico are all American.)

We streamed it on Amazon Prime.