Vancouver British Columbia has one of the most beautiful back drops in the world for its skyline.

I remember the first time I saw it. It was 1969. Looking out the window as the train slowly rolled into the station the view was disrupted by sugar and grain elevators, cranes, warehouses, the bustle and shunting of the rail yard. I could only see glimpses of the harbor and the base of the mountains as they slid between the obscuring clutter of man made edifices and machines.

The train finally stopped and everyone was disembarked. It was early morning when I stepped off the train at harbor station. The end of the line for main land Canada. There was a gritty sense that this place owed its existence to the hard working people of British Columbia, the resource workers and families who earned a rugged existence on the islands and interior of the province and this was the place to which they came to enjoy their free time and money.

I carried my backpack, a cheap desk lamp that I had carried from my last residence, a Sudbury rooming house, and three dollars. These were my worldly possessions. The lamp was my furniture. My backpack my suitcase and three dollars, all that remained from my last pay cheque from INCO. My future prospects extended only as far as the three dollars could carry me. I left the station and walked up Granville street not sure where to go. I had been warned to avoid Hastings Street. My associates who recommended Vancouver as a haven from the bitter northern cold had told me it was easy to get trapped there, it wasn't pleasant and very difficult to get out of, so as I crossed at Granville and Hastings I stayed straight and kept on going. Approximately 100 yards later I had the courage to look back and there it was, the jewel of the world. Nothing I had ever seen before. Snow capped mountains brilliant in the morning sun crowning a green and dark skirt covering a solid wall of earth. A wall so high I had to look up to see the tops, so wide I could not see the edges. My heart and mind melted together and I knew emotionally I would never forget this place, this was now my home, no matter where I went in the world this would be the place I call home. The mountains were now my mother. They would protect me, lift me up while at the same time keep me grounded. When I was lonely they would comfort me when I was happy they would make me proud but more personally I would love them, their majesty, their constant presence, their reliability.

50 years later the mountains have been true. They continue to stand tall, towering over the city. The people enjoy their majesty and virtues as they crawl over them, claiming pieces of their skin as their own. Cutting voraciously at their fir for their pleasure. Ski slopes, outdoor sports, suburbs galore. Where ever a dollar can be made is fair game to the developers and entrepreneurs. Disrespecting everything these majestic beings have stood for, believing as I once did they were indestructible.

Foolishly we believe we have dominance and license to the mountains anyway we wish especially if it can be associated with economic growth. But those with sharp eyes and a genuine concern can see their snow white hair thinning, their majestic dresses tattered and torn, their bright beautiful complexion masked behind a pale hue of grey. I magine speaking to the mountains... 'You look weary mother mountains'. How long your patience will endure we don't know. Perhaps like all mothers who love their children you believe yours can do no wrong and you will endure until your vitality and life seeps away. On the other hand perhaps, when you realize the children will ultimately harm themselves you will stand up and shake the ground and frighten the children off, awaken them from their stupor and once again demand that your majesty and dignity be respected.

I had the opportunity to visit the city again recently. I don't live far, in fact two of my children live there and when I drive up Island I can still see in the distance my mountain mothers looking majestic and bright. But the city where I grew up is gone. It no longer has the vibrancy and life of a city coming into its own. It does not hold for me the sense of opportunity and hope. Perhaps it does for my children they are young and can see the opportunities and feel the sense of belonging. I hope so.

For myself though what I see is a metropolitan motivated by personal want and grasping. People who have gained advantage trying to take as much as they can before the wells run dry. Tall featureless towers crowding streets, pushing and shoving to get as much of the mountain view as they can. Buildings that no longer provide long standing homes but instead offer sterile investments for people driven by shallow pride in the value of the concrete, steel and location they believe they own. On the ground there is no place to rest and enjoy. The city has many un-kept micro parks, dirty streets and a requirement for money if you want to be welcomed. But there are a few bright spots. I discovered a portion of the waterfront has been preserved for the people. An oasis of green and blue where the citizens can walk, rest and enjoy a small bit of peace of mind.

Cafes and restaurants crowded with people wanting to belong, seeking places to belong in a sea of people wanting to belong.

The broad sweeping views of the mountains, harbors, bays and sky are no more than wall dressings to the locals, They have no concept that their own well being is the result of their surroundings and the secret to maintaining their well being is to maintain their surroundings.

Recently there has been a perceptible shift in city management and an increased demand for easily accessible green space to be shared by all the citizens of the city whenever a developer wishes to capitalize on a property. My hope is that this trend will continue through multiple generations of administrators who have the privilege and responsibility to care for it.

When the concrete and glass is restricted Vancouver is a beautiful city, tone down the hustle and bustle and the grasping for cash and you have a home town feel in a place that everyone who comes to goes away feeling better than when they came.