Time to pay more attention to what’s happening here

It was a spectacular scene.

Radiant under a hot summer sun, majestic sea stacks spiralled from the North Atlantic.

Behind them, a herd of humpbacks fed and played in the ocean with a picturesque rural town as a backdrop.

We stopped our hike to let our senses feast.

I love — and crave — being immersed in such places with sites that are big and powerful enough to immediately put you in your place.

They offer an immediate reminder of how large the world is and how we’re just a tiny cog in that big wheel.

During my recent summer holidays, I tried to be dwarfed by as many of these places as possible.

That initiative was great for gaining perspective and aiding relaxation.

So much so, my two-week vacation felt like it was a month long and left me feeling I had truly escaped it all.

Sadly, there was one thing I couldn’t avoid while off on vacay — conversations about Donald Trump.

His name and actions turned up in conversations wherever I travelled.

I get the public’s fascination with his every move. The entertainment value is huge, and his presidency seems to constantly make us question our own values or wonder what’s next.

It’s as if we’re bingewatching a political drama where an unpredictable megalomaniac actually holds the most powerful position in the world.

But it’s not a Netflix show and the consequences are real.

While I’ve come to accept Trump as part of our conversations, it was alarming and disconcerting that no one really seemed to be talking about Canadian politics during my summer break.

Trudeau, Scheer, Singh and May just didn’t appear to be top of mind for people.

And that’s really frightening considering there’ll be a federal election in the next 12 or 13 weeks.

While summer is a season to escape and gain perspective, it’s not a time to pay closer attention to what’s happening stateside than to what’s going on in your own backyard.

People in this country have a big choice ahead of them.

While this nation’s politics lack Donald’s drama, they need to follow local and national news closely to ensure they’re making informed decisions at the ballot box.

Canadians need to know and talk about the issues in their constituency and country more than they do about our neighbours to the south.

A high voter turnout by an informed electorate — would also be spectacular to watch.