Building bridges with strangers might be Paul Jenkinson’s super power.
He starts with a physical installation and “unconditional positive regard.”
Two chairs, a table and a sign with words that promise a safe space, free of judgment or shame; You are not alone – I will listen.
The Nova Scotia man faced a pivotal moment when he turned 70. He could slide into invisibility, or use valuable tools honed over a lifetime while he still had the capacity.
“I had a choice to quietly go into the sunset, as it were, or put my skills to work,” he said. After a career in social work, he also has a history of advocacy, a “push -pull” experience of treating government with dignity while challenging them head on.
“There was a more therapeutic side I wanted to explore, and I thought at 70 if I’m going to do an exploration of Canada I should do it now, before my health took a turn,” he said.
Now he offers to sit and listen in communities across the nation.
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He set out on a cross-Canada trek in May 2025, with a loose two-year timeline to sit in communities and just listen.
Much like the work itself, this is no linear trip.
Mid-March saw him spend time on the South Island, specifically hanging his shingle at Murchie’s, the Inner Harbour, the central library branch and Cafe Fantastico in Victoria as well as Brentwood Emporium in Central Saanich. He goes where people call. On the South Island he was hosted by Michele Hibbins, a Roots of Empathy educator. Other Island stops included three days hosted at the Pacific Gardens Co-housing in Nanaimo and multiple stops in Ladysmith hosted by author and storyteller Rachel Muller.
His journey is also one of learning and sharing. For example, he sat with a trio of people who deal in death, a doula and other therapists who hold space for those in the “dark woods of grief.” He sought their wisdom – what works, what are the challenges – and then parlays that into his listening, and sometimes shares the insight online.
He did set out with some questions that niggled at his brain post-COVID.
Have people been having difficulty coming out of the social isolation that was necessary during COVID? In this new world they were entering, was it even more electronically bubbled up – making it harder for strangers to connect? And could political polarization be addressed if we chose to listen to each other first, without instant rebuttal or virtue signalling?
In a nutshell, the answers are all yes. But it’s so much more complicated.
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Teens and young adults facing bleak circumstances stand out for him. They frequently speak of AI, job loss, the environment and power gone amuck.
“They’re wondering, should I simply curl up in a learned helplessness, hopelessness? Should I become a cynic? Or do I take the youthful energy and take on a piece that I can make a difference.”
There are people with ended marriages, or who feel like failed humans.
“Often (they’re) such wonderful, unique people who just need to maybe find that place where they can dance their dance, and maybe find a few people who dance like them,” he said.
What’s important for each individual is they are heard, and often they’ll talk themselves into solutions or decisions.
“They are the experts. Every person is the expert in their own situation. I’m there to offer unconditional positive regard,” he said.
In being heard and affirmed people experience some level of relief, and even those who come labouring under hardship or circumstances tend to leave lighter and more hopeful. He humbly notes, research says 50 per cent people get better with a therapist and 50 per cent without.
“My sense is they came down the path, if I wasn’t there they’d have gone on and been quite alright – maybe struggling… but they would’ve gone on and made something of their lives.”
Learn more at linktr.ee/pejenkinson.
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Email: christine.vanreeuwyk@blackpress.ca
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