Happy Canada Day

Today is a day to celebrate our country for its greatness despite its faults – maybe even because of its faults.

We Canadians are a diverse lot and we rarely agree on much. Our politicians are corrupt but we keep voting for them because the alternatives seem worse. Our patriotism is much more apparent abroad than at home. It is based on a broken healthcare system, a locked-out hockey league and knee-jerk anti-Americanism, but it unites us with a sense of fierce pride. We may not be able to define it but most of us wouldn’t give it up.

Canada Day is always a bit odd in Quebec, because here in La Belle Province, it seems everything possible has been done to prevent us from celebrating it. Most leases are up on July 1st so today is the unofficial “moving day” for most people in Montreal. As a result, more people will be shlepping boxes than watching fireworks tomorrow. Also, with last week’s Fete Nationale celebrations, many people just view this as a long weekend and part of the launch of summer that coincides with the Montreal Jazz Festival and all kinds of other fun things to do.

Maybe it’s because I recognize how fragile my status as a Canadian is, and that it’s been threatened multiple times and probably will be again in the future. Maybe it’s because, to far too many Canadians, I’m unwanted – an “acceptable casualty” in what they view as a greater good of just wishing good riddance to Quebec. Maybe it’s because of the feeling I get when I see our flag in a position of pride internationally, or when I meet other Canadians while travelling and share moments with them. Or maybe it’s none of those reasons.

But Canada Day, to me, is a time to reaffirm my love of this country and its people – flaws and all. So please join me in wishing a very happy 138th birthday to Canada. (And many more…)