Let's finally get this started.

I wrote out several longer posts over the last two weeks trying to capture my feelings about the last year. As I often do, I sat on them after finishing them, and then read them again. And they all hit the junk pile. After reading them again I realized that they all sounded political and stiff. In trying to be politically correct about the last year, I lost my voice. That's why I haven't been writing at all. I don't want to insult anyone or look like I am favouring one group or another. But I don't favour any group, and I would never insult anyone or any group intentionally. So here we go. People don't want to read long posts, so I thought every couple of days I would put some short ones out that gave updates, and I could tell everyone about what is going on.

Tomorrow Mayor Scott is presenting at the Teck hearing at 9am. At 10a.m. we are attending the grand opening of the Conklin Multiplex. Then we head to Anzac and have the grand opening of the new firehall at 1:30p.m. And then we have a special council meeting at 3p.m. in Anzac regarding the community hall.

As much as I would like to attend the Arts Awards tomorrow evening, I literally have not seen my husband/family together in three weeks, so I am hoping to get home and have supper with them all and hang out for a bit tomorrow night. It really sucks sometimes not being able to attend absolutely everything, but I continue to try to find balance.

The coming week will be busy. We have a council meeting on Tuesday, and then on Wednesday we have another special council meeting to discuss the Moccasin Flat report that the Fort McMurray Metis had done.

I haven't written for so long that I almost don't know where to start. People keep asking me if I am enjoying my time council....and I can honestly say that I am. It's probably the first time in my life that I don't mind putting in lots of hours, as long as it's all for the benefit of the region. I am working with some amazing people, both on council, and in administration. I have met some unbelievable, hard working community leaders, and I still wake up pumped to start the day and see what can be done.

I am always open to any conversation on any topic, my cel is (780)838-1782, or you can send me a message at verna.murphy@rmwb.ca. Councillor McGrath always loved when I wrote about him before, so I'm sure he will be happy to be mentioned in my blogs again, lol. The past Councillors, Claris, Keith, Jane, Phil, and Mayor Scott and Mike have all been wonderful supports this last year. I continue to learn so much every day and they all share their knowledge whenever I ask. And I have bonded with some of the new councillors as we all navigate this new job. It has not been an easy year, but we have been working very hard for our region and the residents that live here. This still sounds awkward, lol...maybe as I do more of these it will become easier again. I will do my best, I think it's important for residents to know what's going on with their council, and I also think this will be important for me, as I miss writing.

This last year has been an absolute honour for me. I still wake up some mornings and think about how blessed I am to serve in this elected role. I hope that people continue to think that I am approachable and open to conversations, as that has always been my goal going into being on council. Otherwise, feel free to slap me up the side of my head whenever I am failing. And feel free to follow me on social media, and I will try to start posting more pictures and updates about everything that is going on in our region(but heads up, I still hate getting my picture taken, so don't expect lots of selfies from me....you don't need to see my face to know what's going on). And if anyone has questions or suggestions about what you would like to hear from me, please send them to me.

I can't not do this.

Many of you know that last October I was elected to council here in Fort McMurray. Over the last year I have dedicated myself to my new role as councillor, and yes, a year in, and I'm still loving it. I know it sounds silly, but I still can't believe it. I'm so lucky to say that my job is working for the residents of the Municipality of Wood Buffalo. It's an honor I promise I will never take for granted.

But I'm going to be honest, the last couple of months I have felt like something was missing, and I couldn't figure out what it was. Luckily I have wonderful friends and when I started vaguely saying that I felt something was off, I started getting feedback that I should be writing again. But I brushed them off. But then over the course of the last few days when I really started thinking about it, I realized that I do miss it. I miss the connection and the interaction. 

So I'm not sure yet what this will look like, or how often I will get to post, but I do know a few things that you can expect. As a councillor, anything I write will respect the office, and it will not be a reflection of the rest of my councillors or the mayor. As a councillor, I will never, ever write about anything related to labour, legal or land as we are never suppose to speak about such things publicly. It has been hard over the last year when I am asked some questions and I cannot share information. There are have been some huge issues that we faced as a new council over the last year, but because the courts are often involved, we cannot speak about it. When those things happen, I will let you know that I just can't talk about certain things. 

I do want to share information that people can use. Even in the last few days I have attended some events, and afterwards people have said, "I wish I had known that was happening, I would have liked to go." So I will share events, and when I attend events or public meetings, I will share my thoughts on the material shared. 

The question that I am most often asked lately is about my weight loss, so I will definitely writing about that as well. Otherwise I will follow my old patterns, and share recipes, life stories, and whatever comes up in my day to day comings and goings. 

This week I'm not sure how much I will get to post, as I will be attending the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association(AUMA) convention in Red Deer. It will be fun to start sharing some of these types of events with everyone. Ironically before I was elected I was not sure of the value of these conferences for elected officials. Last year when I attended, we were able to meet with several Ministers and we were able to get some movement on several issues that were outstanding in our region. This year we will do the same.

Tuesday morning I will be attending the Grand Opening of the Elsie Yanik school at 331 Callen Drive. It starts at 10:30, and is open to the public. I was lucky enough over the years to have many meaningful conversations with the amazing Elsie Yanik. I am so happy that this new school will bear her name. In her quiet gentle way she inspired many to live better lives and to do more for their community. 

Thanks to my family and friends who encouraged me to get back to my writing. It's hard to explain to someone who doesn't write, but it literally feels like life is wrong when I'm not writing. I have been writing over the last year, but nothing that I would share with the public(as I always have done with journals, etc). My next big leap is that I want to share some fictional stories that I have written over the years. I just need the courage to finally let them go out. 

I'm already excited for this new journey, I hope that you will tune in!