Play one of many things to do in Taber

A tip of the hat once again to the whole cast and crew of Taber Players’ latest production with Agatha Christie’s ‘And Then There Were None.’

It brought back memories of one of the books I read in junior high when it was titled the less politically correct ‘Ten Little Indians.’ Reading fellow Taber Times’ scribe Trevor Busch’s preview of the play prior to the local play’s run, I had no idea there was so much history behind the Christie novel which had an even less Politically Correct beginning to it as ‘Ten Little Niggers’ after the British blackface song when it was first published in 1939.

It had been so long since I read the book, I was struggling a bit in the Who Dun It to remember who was the murderer until about three deaths in as Taber Players did a masterful job of moving so many chess pieces around in the intrigue.

What I struggled with also was the ending, as it was not the one that I read. I had no idea upon further internet research that there were worries that when it got translated to the stage and big screen that a more PC ending was needed if people were to flock to it.

But I digress, the production was as solid as ever as I’ve watched many Taber Players Productions over the years as either a photographer for work or simply an enjoyer of theatre.

I marvel at how much work must be put into a production, be it direction, acting, behind-the-scenes promotions, set construction, make up and costumes etc.

If you have not been a big theatre goer in the past, I’d recommend giving it a try when Taber Players’ next production rolls around, if not just for the simple fact of trying something new. I’ve touched on this in past columns, but I have always marveled at how people can complain that there is nothing to do in small towns.

Just this past weekend alone you could have enjoyed ‘And Then There Were None,’ the 4-on-4 Hockey Tournament at the Taber Arena and the Country Jamboree at the Taber Community Centre.

The Taber Pro Rodeo, Taber and M.D. Pheasant Festival, Cornfest, Taber Parade, Taber Public Library children’s activities, Wing Wednesday at eating establishments, Taber Golf Club, Taber Motocross Park, the upcoming M.D. shooting range and Taber Spray Park, tennis courts, parks, Midnight Madness, community-cause suppers, music bands at licensed establishments, karaokee, M.D. Park, horse shows at the Taber Agri-Plex along with the 4-H Show and Sale, Taber Aqua Fun Centre, mixed slo-pitch league, high school sporting events, band concerts, various near-by fishing and hunting spots, walking paths, …do you get where I’m going with this run-on sentence, of just some activities in a calendar year that locals can do, off the top of my head?

There are plenty of things you can run to that can occupy your recreational time enjoyably if you just give it a chance.

Even if you get out of your comfort zone and try something new and find out you don’t like it, is the voyage of discovery at least worth it, compared to your child sitting at home playing their 20th video game, or you watching the same rerun of the Big Bang Theory for the 50th time?

It’s funny, sometimes we get caught in our ruts and we think we can never get out of them, or others have these preconceived notions of us when it comes to who we are. Although 40 years old, my mother still thinks I’m the same type of person as I was in my youth.

I have forever been branded by family as a finicky eater from a trip I took to the United States with my uncle, aunt and cousin as a teenager. There my daily intake involved french toast for breakfast, cheeseburger for lunch and spaghetti for supper —every day of the trip like clockwork.

That image is forever burned in their heads, in that many were shocked when I went to the Netherlands last year. I tried such native Dutch cuisine as raw herring fish, bitterballen, and stamppot. But the fact is, all our pallets can grow from when we are teenagers as I am now willing to try anything once, but there are no guarantees I will like it, as shown for my distaste of dropjes (black licorice candies) in that nation.

How are you going to ever know if you are going to like something if you’ve never tried it?  There are many things out there past your front door for you to do. You just have to give it a chance. And in all these different activities can come different insights and personalities where perhaps some new friendships can be formed.

It is not just about getting off the couch to try new things physically, but mentally as well.

If you sit there complaining that there’s nothing to do, you are doing nothing to try and change that perspective.