Elmira Maple Syrup Festival 2026

Here in the Greater Toronto Area, spring has been a long time coming.  Most days have been damp and cold and rainy.  However, yesterday was the exception.  The sun made a rare appearance.  The sky was blue and it was a balmy 10 degrees Celsius.  It was a perfect day to visit the town of Elmira, Ontario for the annual maple syrup festival. 

Elmira is situated in southwestern Ontario, in the township of Woolwich, 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) north of Waterloo. The first Elmira Maple Syrup Festival took place on April 10, 1965.  The event now attracts up to 80,000 people, and is recognized by the Guinness Book of Records as the World's Largest One-Day Maple Syrup Festival.  There are more than 24,000 volunteers assisting visitors as they enjoy plenty of good food and many family-friendly activities.   

Here are some photos I took of this year's festival.

- Joanne

An Easter Message 2026

• “Go quickly, and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead.” — Matthew 28:7

• “Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.” — Pope John Paul II

Today is Easter Sunday, a day of hope, freedom and triumph.  As Christians celebrate Easter, the Jewish people celebrate Passover, which this year began on April 1 and ends at nightfall April 9.  Passover is also a feast of hope, freedom and triumph,  Both faiths are forever entwined because Jesus was a Jew and the Last Supper was a Passover meal.  It should also be remembered that the Muslim faithful have recently observed the holy month of Ramadan.

Our world is a very troubled place right now, filled with violence and hatred.  It is a difficult time for humanity.  Sadly, there is war and strife in the Holy Land, Iran, Ukraine and other places.  There are cruel and tyrannical leaders in the world.  They profess to be of the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu or other faiths.  There are really charlatans who do not adhere by the Golden Rule that binds people of true faith.  They do not respect human life.  They vilify immigrants and refugees.  They are religious nationalists.  They make a mockery of the teachings of their faith.  They are likely to worship at the altar of money and power.  The pretend to be pious, but they remind me of the hypocritical Pharisees of the New Testament who made a show of their piety.

The  Children of Abraham should not be killing each other because of greed, power and politics.  We know that these terrible times shall pass because all tyranny comes to an end.  The pendulum always swings.  We know that there are also many decent people in the world.  Death and evil were defeated on Easter Sunday.  For this, we believers are joyful.  Hallelujah is our song.  Faith should bring us together, not tear us apart.

- Joanne

Annoying feature of Facebook

If you have to delete loads of email every day, you must share my feelings.  There is one feature of Facebook that absolutely drives me crazy.  I receive quite a lot of email from my Facebook friends commenting on other Facebook postings.  For example, someone they know, but I don't know, might be celebrating a birthday or anniversary, or my Facebook friend may be commenting on a subject on another Facebook page that I have no interest in.  Like it or not (and I don't like it), those messages have to be deleted.

Clearing up those Facebook comments is using up my valuable time.  It is also a very boring task.  I have better things to do and I'd be willing to bet many of you feel the same way.

- Joanne

Looking for some fun novels to read this spring?

Spring has sprung in the Northern Hemisphere.  If you enjoy reading and are looking for some good reading material this spring, I suggest my latest novel The Roving Reporter.  It is the sequel to my previous book The Missing Reporter.  If you are interested, check out my author's web page,  Just click on the link below.

Joanne Madden – Author

You can also google joannemadden.ca to reach my author's webpage.  The books are available on Indigo and Amazon.

The Roving Reporter: Spanning the Globe in the 1990s is the sequel to my second novel, The Missing Reporter. It chronicles the further adventures of Sandra McKay, a spirited journalist from Prince Edward Island. The novel takes place from 1990 to 1997, just before the Millennium and the digital age. After being abducted by ruthless mob boss, Bruno Rossi, Sandra travels to France to recover from her ordeal and to visit her cousin, Dennis Casey, a man with a secret. Dennis' friend offers Sandra a job as a foreign correspondent based in London. She travels around the globe, accompanied by Colin Purcell, a crusty English photographer. During her seven years as a world reporter, Sandra covers major stories in Britain, France, Italy, South Africa, Japan, Hong Kong. Mexico and Australia. Meanwhile, she finds herself targeted by the mob.

The Missing Reporter is a story of intrigue and suspense, set in 1989.  What happened to TV crime reporter Sandra McKay?  Why did she suddenly vanish after starting a new job.  Is her disappearance linked to the death of prominent dental surgeon Lawrence Somerville, whose brother works for a mob boss?  Intrepid private detective Norm Trapper in on the case and he is looking for answers.

I hope you enjoy the books and I thank you for your support.

- Joanne