I was over in Commissioners Park by Dow's Lake some days ago to photograph tulips- most of which weren't showing, though you can see the beds in the backgrounds of these shots.
There is a memorial set aside, with trees that were planted here after the bombing of Air India Flight 182 in 1985. Most of the passengers were Canadian citizens of Indian descent- the tragedy was the worst mass murder in Canadian history and the worst airline related terrorism incident before the events of 9/11. The names of the 329 passengers and crew are inscribed on a plaque here in the park.
Something more uplifting- this tree was blossoming in front of a house in Centretown last week. Anyone know it by the blossoms? They're very rare here.
Peaceful indeed, William. I can see myself sitting there for a while just enjoying the peace and beauty. Thanks so much for sharing. Great job on the last photo!
ReplyDeleteA good memory stays!
ReplyDeleteTomás.
The blossoms look like magnolia blossoms. So sad about that ill-fated flight. So glad the community is remembering.
ReplyDeleteJanis
GDP
That looks like a peaceful place indeed.
ReplyDelete1985 ... I can't remember anything about this horrible disaster.
gorgeous blossoms. ( :
ReplyDeleteMagnolia tree. :)
ReplyDelete@Linda: you're welcome.
ReplyDelete@Tomas: it does.
@Janis: it is a fitting memorial.
@Jan: it was horrific.
@Beth: they are!
@Deb: I wondered if they might, but didn't think magnolias grew this far north.
A beautiful memorial. A sad reminder.
ReplyDeleteIt's difficult to think that the Air India murder happened 31years ago. It took a very long time to convict even one person.
ReplyDeleteIt is good to stand together! This is our comfort and strength. Hearts are with Canadians right now as you folks face those fires out west. My bro lives in Edmonton and is safe. . . so far! Best Wishes for a fine week, William
ReplyDeleteA very nice memorial to a horrible event. Is that a magnolia tree? That would be very rare to see in such a northern climate.
ReplyDeleteWhat a tragedy - I hope the memorial has given at least a little peace to minds of victims' loved ones.
ReplyDeleteThe flowers are beautiful!
@Norma: and rather unresolved a tragedy too.
ReplyDelete@Red: it still turns up from time to time in the news.
@Cloudia: that part of Alberta is one part I haven't seen yet.
@Sharon: Deb thinks it is- I'd wondered if we were too far north for magnolia trees.
@Tamago: I can think of only one other tree in areas I pass through with similar blossoms- there can't be many magnolia trees in these parts.
Very lovely, and a great place to reflect on the history.
ReplyDeleteSuch places are necessary to help us remember but it is so sad that we keep having to construct them. So many people seem to worship death. Which doesn't make much sense.
ReplyDeleteA good memorial.
ReplyDeleteThat is a magnolia - I'm surprised they are rare there since they are all over the city here. I guess those few degrees of more cold makes a big difference to plants.
A beautiful park and magnolia tree. They are in bloom here right now too.
ReplyDeleteLovely park. In the last photo the flower is so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI can't remember this aeroplane crash, even then their were terroristic attacks, un believeble.
ReplyDelete@Linda: I'm going to be regularly in and out of this park for, oh... a month or so of posts by the time I'm done with the tulips.
ReplyDelete@Lowell: unfortunately true.
@RedPat: I've only seen one other tree in my usual haunts with those flowers, and I've been looking. A few degrees of average temperature and a few degrees further north can make quite a difference in whether or not a tree can grow in any great numbers.
@Pamela: I always thought of magnolias as a southern tree.
@Orvokki: it appears that this was a very good year for the blossom of this tree. We'll see if that translates to other tree blossoms in the coming weeks.
@Marianne: it is an incident that weighs strongly in Canadian history. You read the names, and it's not hard to imagine that whole families were wiped out.
Very sad but so important they are remembered...don't know the name but it's a beautiful blossom...
ReplyDeleteA lovely memorial. That looks like a magnolia to me too.
ReplyDeleteNever forgotten William, a lovely memorial to those dear departed souls. I was gong to say Magnolia for your last shot, it is a real beauty.
ReplyDeleteA nice memorial for all those victims set in a peaceful location.
ReplyDeleteDidn't know there was a memorial for Flight 182 in Ottawa.
ReplyDeleteIf the tree isn't a magnolia the only other one I can think of is some sort of dogwood, which is more common in northerly areas. It's hard to tell without seeing the center.
ReplyDeleteThat is a peaceful place for the memorial William. My vote goes to the tree being a Dogwood also, very pretty flower.
ReplyDelete@Geoff: I'm inclined to go with the majority who think it's a magnolia.
ReplyDelete@Lois: that is largely the consensus, though I see some dissenting opinions about dogwood.
@Denise: it's a good spot for such a memorial- right in the park, so people will stop and look.
@Bill: it certainly is.
@Furry Gnome: I lived in the area when I first came to Ottawa, so I did know about the memorial plaque very early on.
@Kay: the only dogwoods I know of here are up at a Japanese zen garden at the Museum of History. By now they've no doubt blossomed.
@Grace: interesting that more people think it's a magnolia!
Last picture. Is that Magnolias only in white?
ReplyDeleteLikely!
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