I'm French-Canadian, and I'm well aware of how prideful our little culture can be. We're known for being stubborn, opinionated and also very passionate about everything we do. That's good – we're a plainspoken people that you can take at face value.

I never realized the extent of our stubbornness, though, until I hit upon some of the latest news up here in Quebec. A labor dispute led to a lockout. No problem there, all's well and fitting the profile of the culture. Four months later, it's back to business with the dispute resolved.

When I read more on the lockout and its effects, though, I had to shake my head.

Management of the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery (one of the oldest in Canada) in Montreal locked out employees in May. For four months, gravediggers' shovels lay idle while their clientele waited to bury the dead. I'm sure the number of patient souls increased during that time, too.

I gotta say, that's just gross. Storing those who have passed on in a cold room for four months without giving them a proper burial just isn't right. There is something terribly wrong with stacking up the dead because of a labor dispute. I understand that graveyards are a business like any other, but morals and ethics certainly come into play in the emotional affair of giving people their final rest. The strain on those left grieving the departed is a tough pressure for the people involved to deal with.

Cold storage is common in places where winter months leave frozen ground impenetrable. There is still a huge emotional difference between an unpleasant fact and a preventable situation. Sometimes, it's better just to bury the hatchet and find another way to resolve an issue than to let disagreements affect the emotional well-being of others. Pride can be a good thing, but not in this case.

Posted by Louise.

Louise writes for Creative And Unique Gift Ideas.