sooo many tears....and also for Boston.

i feel for all of the families and everyone who is affected by the Boston Marathon bombing that recently occurred. i have many tears. many, many tears.

and you should know that my province, Nova Scotia, and Boston have a very close history. You may not know that during the Halifax explosion of 1917, that the city of Boston were the first responders and saved sooo many Nova Scotian lives. Boston has always been a true friend to us and that is why we send a Nova Scotian Christmas tree to the city of Boston for over 100 years. Boston and Nova Scotia have an incredible history that most people, both Canadian and American know nothing about.

i cry for Boston...i cry for everyone, everywhere, who has been affected by this terrible tragedy.

but i cry harder for a Canadian folk singer who just passed. her name is Rita MacNeil. she was from Big Pond, Cape Breton Island. my island. she was not beautiful but beautiful was her spirit and her voice. she represented what my island...and the people of my island... are all about. she was a lovely human being. you can learn more about her here.

she was a heroe. and many of us cape bretoners are hurt. please pray for all of the Bostonians, their friends and families and everyone else who has been impacted by the horrible events that happened at the Boston Marathon.

but please also pray for all of us Cape Bretoners....whose hearts are heavy. we have lost an angel. an angel that we loved so much.

this is one of the songs that she is most famous for. she sings it with the backing of "The Men of the Deeps", which is a male chorus of coal miners here in Cape Breton. the song, which she wrote, is about working in the coal mine.

my father was a coal miner and could never hear this song without crying. i could never hear this song without crying. at most of our community dances this song is played. and everyone cries.

please listen to the song. Rita MacNeil, although loved by Canadians, Brits and Australians was never properly famous. she should have been. but she wasn't.

she will be sorely missed by her beloved island....which is my beloved island. please, listen to her song. check out some of her other songs on youtube - she made 24 albums!!!! and read her wikipedia page.

she is a beloved angel of this isle....and we are hurting from the loss of her. our island will recover...but we will never forget.

Rita...you were one in a million...and an angel to many. i know that you are in the arms of my Lord and Saviour...where you belong. thank you for everything.