Happy Canada Day!!! July 1 is our day to celebrate being the greatest country on earth. We watch concerts, see fireworks, paint our faces, and put flags all over ourselves. It's the one day a year we proudly display our patriotism. For reasons unknown to me, tomorrow those displays are gone and we are back to our quiet self-deprecating ways. So let's enjoy these 24 hours while we can!
Canada has made the world a better place in so many ways. Think about Frederick Banting who at 32 was the youngest person ever to receive the Noble Peace Prize for medicine. As amazing as that is, his work in the discovery of insulin changed the lives of tens of millions of people worldwide. Pretty impressive.
Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. James Naismith gave the world basketball. What would the weekend be without Saturday Night Live, the brainchild of Lorne Michaels? Terry Fox and Rick Hansen showed us all that physical challenges could be overcome with mental fortitude and kindness. And how many of you chose Celine Dion singing My Heart Will Go On as your wedding song? You're welcome!
Margaret Atwood is one of the greatest authors of this century. She and Lucy Maud Montgomery are heralded throughout the world. Ten years before Rosa Parks started a chain of events in the US, Viola Desmond refused to move out of the "white's only" section of a movie theater. And we claim both Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Ryan Reynolds as our own.
We lead the world in freshwater and our military is praised for its many peacekeeping missions. Our politeness and willingness to help others is legendary. Wayne Gretzky, Sidney Crosby, Brooke Henderson and Steve Nash all call Canada home. We have the highest tides in the world, the best view of the northern lights and world-renowned maple syrup.
Universal healthcare, an old age pension, and the "baby bonus" are all things we can be proud of. Mr. Dressup and The Friendly Giant entertained the kids while their parents watched This Hour Has 22 Minutes or played Trivial Pursuit. We gave the world the paint roller and garbage bags...imagine life without those! Not to mention peanut butter, the Wonder Bra and the pacemaker.
Canada is not perfect. We have skeletons in our closets we are deeply ashamed of. Our historic, and more recent, treatment of Indigenous people is horrific. We need to overhaul both the healthcare and education systems. There is a lot of work to do with this fentanyl crisis and kids dying by their own hands. But...
I still believe for all our faults we live in the greatest country on earth! Happy Canada Day to us!!
Ang
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