Friday, March 4, 2011

"We are the true north, strong and free and what’s more is that we didn’t just say it, we made it be.

withglowinghearts-: When defining Canada, you might list some statistics. You might mention our tallest building or biggest lake. You might shake a tree in the fall and call a red leaf Canada. You might rattle off some celebrities, might mention Buffy Sainte-Marie. Might even mention the fact that we’ve got a few Barenaked Ladies or that we made these crazy things, like zippers, electric cars and washing machines. When defining Canada it seems the world’s anthem has been, “been there done that” and maybe that’s where we used to be at. It’s true. We’ve done and we’ve been, we’ve seen all the great themes get swallowed up by the machine and turned into theme parks. But when defining Canada, don’t forget to mention that we have set sparks. We are not just fishing stories about the one that got away. We do more than sit around and say “eh?” and yes, we are the home of the Rocket and the Great One. Who inspired little number nines, and little number ninety-nines. But we’re more than just hockey and fishing lines off of the rocky coast of the Maritimes and some say what defines us is something as simple as please and thank you. And as for you’re welcome, well we say that too, but we are more than genteel or civilized. We are an idea in the process of being realized. We are young, we are cultures strung together then woven into a tapestry and the design is what makes us more than the sum total of our history. We are an experiment going right for a change. With influences that range from a to zed, and yes we say zed instead of zee. We are the colours of Chinatown and the coffee of Little Italy, we dream so big that there are those who would call our ambition an industry because we are more than sticky maple syrup and clean snow. We do more than grow wheat and brew beer. We are vineyards of good year after good year. We reforest what we clear because we believe in generations beyond our own knowing now that so many of us have grown past what used to be, we can stand here today filled with all the hope people have when they say things like “someday”. Someday we’ll be great, someday we’ll be this or that. Someday we’ll be at a point when someday was yesterday and all of our aspirations will pay the way for those who on that day look towards tomorrow and still they say someday. We will reach the goals we set and we will get interest on our inspiration because we are more than a nation of whale watchers and lumberjacks, more than backpacks and hiking trails. We are hammers and nails building bridges towards those who are willing to walk across. We are the lost-and-found for all those who might find themselves at a loss. We are not the see-through gloss or glamour of those who clamour for the failings of others. We are fathers brothers sisters and mothers, uncles and nephews aunts and nieces. We are cousins. We are found missing puzzle pieces. We are families with room at the table for newcomers. We are more than summers and winters, more than on and off seasons. We are the reasons people have for wanting to stay because we are more than what we say or do. We live to get past what we go through and learn who we are. We are students. Students who study the studiousness of studying, so we know what as well as why, we don’t have all the answers, but we try and the effort is what makes us more. We don’t all know what it is in life we’re looking for, so keep exploring, go far and wide or go inside but go deep, go deep as if James Cameron was filming a sequel to The Abyss. And suddenly there was this location scout, trying to figure some way out to get inside you because you’ve been through hell and high water and you went deep keep exploring. Because we are more than a laundry list of things to do and places to see. We are more than hills to ski or countryside ponds to skate. We are the abandoned hesitation of all those who can’t wait. We are first-rate greasy-spoon diners and healthy-living cafes. A country that is all the ways you choose to live. A land that can give you variety because we are choices. We are millions upon millions of voices shouting, “keep exploring… we are more”. We are the surprise the world has in store for you, it’s true. Canada is the “what” in “what’s new?”, so don’t say “been there done that” unless you’ve sat on the sidewalk while chalk artists draw still lifes on the concrete of a kid in the street, beatboxing to Neil Young for fun. Don’t say you’ve been there done that unless you’ve been here doing it. Let this country be your first-aid kit for all the times you get sick of the same old same old. Let us be the story told to your friends and when that story ends, leave chapters for the next time you’ll come back. Next time pack for all the things you didn’t pack for the first time, but don’t let your luggage define your travels. Each life unravels differently and experiences are what make up the colours of our tapestry. We are the true north, strong and free and what’s more is that we didn’t just say it, we made it be. -Shane Koyczan
   I woke up this morning aching. It wasn't the Charley horse that I received the second I stepped out of bed, which made me think I was going to die. It also wasn't the excruciating stubbed toe I got from falling over my chair. I didn't realize what I was aching from until I went downstairs and glanced at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic DVD my parents bought me for Valentines day. That's when I realized what I was suffering from, at full force: Olympic withdrawal.
    As I popped in the disk, I couldn't help but remember Alexandre Bilodeau's gold medal run, or Joannie Rochette's brave, bronze medal skate. Watching the opening ceremonies, I got a little teary eyed. The beautiful version of "Oh Canada" made me stand up with my hand on my heart. The killer whales that swam across the arena made me want to go whale watching, and the kilt wearing fiddle man made me want to take up highland dancing again. It wasn't until I saw Wayne Gretzky running with torch that I actually started crying. I miss waking up every morning in February, listening to Brian Williams voice tell me about how we were doing. I miss cheering "Loouuuuu!" every waking second of the hockey games, even if Canada isn't playing. I miss how they could bring a country together and I miss no one making fun of me when I walk though the halls of Westdale wearing my Team Canada Crosby jersey; I miss that one more than you will ever know.
      The memories of ice dancing gold, Patrick Chan and the Golden Goal came flooding back to me as I hugged my stuffed, Quatchi mascot. Whenever I look at something, I'm reminded by the Olympics. Ice, snow, gold and even the chair in front of the television that I sat on as the Golden Goal was scored remind me of them. But the Olympics were so much more than the medals we won or the legends that were born. It was about coming together as a nation and realizing what we could accomplish. It was about realizing that we were more than just fishing, Tim Horton's coffees, beavers, zippers and ice hockey. Realizing that we were more than polite people, curlers, mounties and maple syrup tappers. As I was listening to the speech by Shane Koyczan, I understood that the Olympics were about realizing we should always, no matter what the circumstances are, be proud to be Canadian.
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