Woof! Beaumont is a Happy Canada Day pooch eh!
We Canadians live in a blind spot about our identity. We have very strong feelings about who we aren’t but only weak ones about who we are. We’re passionate about what we don’t want to become but oddly passive about what we should be.
John Cruickshank (in McLean’s Magazine)
I am Canadian.
Liberated. Free.
I have the right to vote and the freedom to express my opinion without fearing for my life.
I drive on the right side of the road. I have a car. I have a home. I have a job that I love. I have the right to oppose my government. I have the right to speak out.
I don’t carry a gun. I carry a passport that promises me safe passage anywhere in the world I choose to go.
Because, as a Canadian I have choice.
Being Canadian is not about not being American, our giant neighbour to the south against whom we are constantly comparing ourselves. Being Canadian is about claiming my right to live in a country where tolerance and justice share equal voice with compassion and the right to a fair defence.
We don’t have the death penalty in Canada. I’m proud of that.
And, as we seem to lose more and more of what makes us different than being American, I fear the loss of safety on our streets. I fear the loss of freedom in our schools.
As we become more ‘politically correct’, I fear the loss of Santa Claus and O Canada in our schools. I am Canadian and I am proud to celebrate Christmas and Easter. I am proud my neighbour is free to celebrate Hanukkah or Ramadan.
I am Canadian means I live in a land where the tapestry of nations woven together in our vast and varied lands creates a rich and vibrant world of colour and culture. Stitched together across a land where every voice is equal.
I am Canadian and I stand proud before the Maple Leaf, shoulder to shoulder with my brethren, no matter our skin colour, no matter our belief as we sing loud and clear, “O Canada, my home and native land.”
And then I realize in my oh so Canadian conscience that, we still didn’t get it right. We just changed the words of our national anthem to be inclusive of both male and females but the very words of our national anthem deny the truth of one-third of our population who do not claim Canada as their ‘native land’.
Oh dear. Best we change the words again so everyone feels they belong in this amazing land called Canada.
I am Canadian.
Dare Boldly 
for my grandparents it was their ‘adopted land’ …but I was born here, so were my parents, so I think of it as my ‘native land’
m
p.s. – a geography correct. It is our friends to the south who have the GIANT neighbour. We’re bigger, and always have been. Some would argue we are better, and always have been. Certainly friendlier, and always have been.
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Geography wise — for sure!
But somehow, their 10X our population seems to stick with me… 🙂
Happy Canada Day Mark!
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lucky us! … size, as in population, matters if you fielding armies. But if you measure in opportunities/sq. mile, I believe we come out ahead. Way ahead.
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As a first generation Canadian, I have always seen this country as the land that brought opportunity to my family. A country that while close to my parents birthplace of England, was just different enough to give them the adventure they wanted and their children the opportunities they never had. So proud and pleased they chose this country and that my children are born here. SO very, very proud to be Canadian.
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Like you, I’m a first generation Canadian Karen. And like you, I am very proud to be Canadian. thanks my friend!
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Happy Canada Day Louise! I once did a cultural values international quiz to see which country I am most aligned to … Yep – it’s Canada 😀
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YOu would have been such a gift to our country Val! But then, your heart is a universal donor, where ever you are, light shines.
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Thank you for your words – they really did make me smile Louise! I hope your week is going well. 💛
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As an Aussie I felt a connection to the people I met in Canada when we had the chance to visit. Such a beautiful country Louise and a different experience to my trip to the States. More relaxed, the people were very down to earth, friendly and had a dry sense of humour much like us. Such a passion for life. Just my experience travelling through. I treasure my memories. Enjoy the special day.
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Thanks Kath — I actually took a couple of extra days so had a five day weekend. Luxurious! 🙂 And relaxed. And yes, our sense of humour is much more dry than our neighbours to the south — makes up for our sometimes frigid weather!
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Except for the weather — and, you know, that I was born here thing — I would rather be in Canada! Happy Canada day!
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And we would love to have you Leigh! HOpe your July 4th was spectacular!
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My great grandmother was Canadian, a strong and loving gentlewoman with a heart for justice and peace.
She marched as a suffragette and created a firm foundation for social justice in the family she later built.
She taught us love and respect for Canada, even though she followed her husband here to the states early
in their marriage. I see the Canada she loved in you:) I cheer you and yours!
-Jennifer
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See! I knew we were related Jennifer! Love that you have Canadian soil in your roots. Your flowers grow so beautifully, perhaps those roots are enriched by your grandmother’s love of Canada! And I cheer you and your July 4th celebrations. Hugs
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