gents for Change across five continents join hand- in-hand for Fair Trade and the Planet to celebrate World Fair Trade Day on May 13. Fair traders in the supply chain, joined by consumers, policy makers and advocates, form human chains in their celebrations to mark their commitment to these valuable causes, our route to sustainable devel- opment.


Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dia- logue, transparency and re- spect, that seeks greater eq- uity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development


by


Gwen Repeta Fair Trade


offering


better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers – especially in the South of our planet. Fair Trade organizations, backed by consumers, are


engaged actively in supporting producers, in awareness- raising and in campaigning for changes in the rules and practice of conventional international trade." They can be recognized by the World Fair Trade Organization logo. Fair Trade is more than just trading: • It proves that greater justice in world trade is pos-


sible. • It highlights the need for change in the rules and practice of conventional trade and shows how a success- ful business can also put people first. • It is a tangible contribution to the fight against pov- erty, climate change and economic crisis. • Our organization, Ten Thousand Villages, is the old- est and largest Fair Trade organization in North Ameri- ca, selling artisan-crafted personal accessories, home de- cor and gift items from around the globe. Our mission statement: Ten Thousand Villages cre- ates opportunities for artisans in developing countries to earn income by bringing their products and stories to our markets through long-term, fair trading relationships. World Fair Trade Day is celebrated in many ways


in our stores! Here in Winnipeg watch for musicians, henna and sampling of fair trade goodies. Both stores in Winnipeg (see link below) will also have a draw for a fair trade gift basket and a craft for the young at heart. Already enjoying Fair Trade chocolates, tea or cof- fee, or a proud owner of a beautiful piece of Fair Trade handicraft? Give back the love to the makers of your fa- vourite Fair Trade products through a group selfie! It’s your chance to be part of the Fair Trade global advocacy. Show solidarity through a human chain selfie. Simply follow the steps below: • Get at least two local “heroes” – artists, a community


leader, an admired athlete, a TV personality – to join in. More than two is better.


disparate opinions at the table. One friend said she had read that in a real- istic


sense we should probably change spous- es every 20 years as we are different at 20, 40 and 60. This drew a huge response, but we all agreed that it would mean


another set of


adjustments every 20 years.


My reply was that if anything ever happened to Barbra, I would stay single. I made one set


Jim Pappas


of compromises in marriage and I am not about to make another. I learned how to squeeze the toothpaste, re- place the toilet paper roll and many other mundane things that can topple


Musings on marriage A


t dinner with friends the other night, we were all musing on marriage. There were several


• Form a human chain by locking your hands, smile and CLICK. • Post your selfie on your favourite social media chan- nel with the hashtags #FairTradeDay and #AgentFor- Change The World Fair Trade Organization will find your self- ie through these hashtags and will share it on our social media channel. Make a difference in your world! Come to Ten Thou- sand Villages in Winnipeg on World Fair Trade Day and learn about Fair Trade and what it means! Check tenthousand villages.ca for store locations. Gwen Repeta is Canada rug program co-ordinator and program manager at Ten Thousand Villages in Winnipeg.


a relationship. I would be a self-sus- taining single if that ever occurred and be available to fill in a place at dinner for any of my friends. Someone retorted that “if you have one good relationship you can have another” and I do not agree. Iron- ing out the relationship kinks took a few years until we were comfort- able in our respective roles.


Before marriage, my


aunt took me out to lunch to instruct me in the ways of marriage. She contended that I needed to pull back once I entered the marriage


You are not alone. We are here to help.


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ring. I was a potential threat to my bride: I could cook, entertain, keep house, buy gifts and wrap them, set a table and look after myself. This, she said, would not sit well with a young bride. I told her that this was foolish talk and that I would proceed to do all those things in marriage because I saw it as a participatory democracy. For the first few months after the wedding I continued to do all these things – and was met by a wife who felt she was unnecessary. So I offered to back off and stop working around the house. After three weeks she called a truce and said, “Go back to where you were.” Why the change of heart? She retorted that it was a heck of a lot easier to maintain a home when there were two people actively participating in the workload.


I was elated that she had arrived at 6 www.lifestyles55.net


this conclusion. I give full credit to my mother as she always said that if she had raised two boys that couldn’t do anything she would consider herself a failure as a mother. So we did indeed learn how to look after ourselves in every way. A marriage should be a participatory democracy, where the husband does his share around the home. Some- times when our children were young I would come home to a wife who was teeter-tottering on the edge after deal- ing with them all day. I would step in and take over to give her a much need- ed break. As they grew, we always had lively discussions about them and pre- sented a unified front. The kids knew that there was little wiggle room once Mom and Dad had talked.


Now that they are both grown and gone we have settled into a new pat- tern of interdependence even though they often try to impose ideas on us. We tell them that we raised them to be independent so that we too could be in this lovely denouement of our lives.


We have seen some friends marry a few times over the years and we call them “serial monogamists” as they can’t seem to get it right. Marriage is not a perfect situation in any sense of the word. It involves two human be- ings who may see things from differ- ent ends of the telescope. I am always the “glass half full” person and Bar- bra the “glass half empty” person but that’s why it works for us. We don’t insist on the other person agreeing on everything but rather honour the other person’s point of view. There are no absolute rights or wrongs in marriage just a longstand- ing series of compromises between two people.


Barbra succinctly summed it up years ago when she told some friends that having equality in a marriage meant that there were times that she was “Mrs. Jimmy” and times when I was “Mr. Barbra”. I always thought that was a powerful explanation of how marriage works. You always sup- port and advocate for your partner and know when to take the lead or pick up the pieces.


Most of the best marriages I have ever known were between people that shared common interests but not al- ways the same point of view. That idea of “point of view” is integral to marriage for it creates balance and fos- ters discussion between two people. I am a strong advocate for marriage.


I feel that if you get it right you may possibly not ever get that lucky again. So the idea of changing my mate ev- ery 20 years does not sit well with me. I feel this even though the support of that argument is that you yourself are different at every stage. My question is this: is the other person not differ- ent, too, and are we not evolving to- gether?


Marriage is a complicated thing with its detractors, but for me it has been a wonderful thing. Even to this day we still do not agree on everything but I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s a re- lationship that is not complacent but still lively and exciting and filled with mystery. We celebrate the fact we have two points of view and can still func- tion as a team. Barbra can still surprise me, and knowing my gullible nature has played upon it for years. She can still make me laugh louder than can any other person I have known, and I salute our differences every day. James Pappas is a member of the CJNU board.


May 2017


Learn about world Fair Trade on its special day this month A


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