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Canada days
Years ago, when I was a student at University of Waterloo, a professor asked us to write an essay about 10 things we’d put into a time capsule which would define us as Canadians. He said, “No printed materials, please.” As a student in the Canadian Studies Programme, I thought printed materials would be an easy out. All of the Canadian authors who were on our reading lists, surely I could include one book perhaps, George Grant’s Lament for a Nation. I’d read it once, and figured that was enough. I asked if I could include my Social Insurance Card. SIN cards are truly Canadian. Mine is red and white, also truly flag-like. And, again the answer was “no”. So, in honour of Canada Day, here are some excerpts from that essay. I was a much younger person, then. And for those of you who know me, and most of you don’t, I’ve never written an essay for a professor that wasn’t a bit cheeky. Now if that isn’t Canadian, I don’t know what is. Here’s a small part of the essay’s rough draft.
“All of this thinking about being a Canadian, and worrying about someone opening my time capsule one thousand years from now, gave me a huge headache. I needed an Aspirin. The Extra Strength kind, which is always on my desk or in my briefcase, would do the trick. Of course it isn’t where it should be when you need it and as I was looking for the brain soother I wondered if it was possible to get through a day of studies without an Aspirin. Surely I could, but it wasn’t worth the try. As I removed my Expos ball cap and massaged my temples, I wondered if would be okay to wash the Aspirin down with a CANADIAN. A beer might help the thought process. So, off to the fridge. Ball cap and Aspirin in hand, poor head throbbing.
My fridge is an eyesore, even before it’s opened. It’s covered with “art”, calendars, appointment cards, credit card bills and un-checked lottery tickets, all of which are held fast to the surface with FRIDGE MAGNETS. Fridge magnets, if only I had a more efficient system of filing things and had a place to put my kid’s art work, then I wouldn’t need fridge magnets. I bet I could live without the Aspirin, the Canadian, the Expos ball cap and the fridge magnets, if I were more organized. And, while I’m thinking of what to include in a time capsule, where’s the law that says women have to wear brassieres? I don’t remember reading a woman had to wear a bra. There certainly wasn’t anything in the Canadian Constitution about the wearing of bras. When I put this flipping list together, I’m going to include a brassiere. And, instead of a time capsule, I’m going to use a plastic grocery bag. Goodness knows I have at least three dozen in the cabinet below the kitchen sink and, I’m in the kitchen. So, put the beer, the bra, the fridge magnets into the plastic bag and then?
Well, and then I wouldn’t be a true Canadian unless I included a cassette of Canadian music. Maybe, I’ll toss some k.d. Lang or Bruce Cockburn or Gilles Vigneault cassettes into the plastic shopping bag, on top of the beer, the bra and the fridge magnets. What’s my count, now? Only seven? Oh my, hold the phone, there’s my Tim Hortons Travel Mug. In it goes. That’s eight items. Unless! The phone, if I could find it. Remember the good old days when you knew where the phone was? That’s right, on the wall in the kitchen, next to the sink and near the junk drawer, now the phone could be anywhere. I’m not sure if the plastic grocery bag is going to be big enough. I just thought of including a basketball, a Canadian flag, a dream catcher and a canoe paddle. Too much? I should ask the professor if I could include more than 10 items. After paying my tuition last week, I could throw in my empty wallet, too.”
The thing is, now that I’m a whole lot older and, hopefully I’m wiser. I’m not sure if any of those material things would define me as a being a Canadian. So much has changed since I wrote that essay. I’m not the same person. One of the questions I scribbled in the draft notes was “Are we always Canadians or do we change our cultural identity, constantly…..” Over the years, changing political environments, including “correctness” have influenced my identity. The people, who entered/exited/stayed in my life, since those days, have had a profound influence on my Canadian-ness. LOML and I often have the discussion, “What if we’d stayed in Toronto?”. What if, indeed. We’re very happy we’ve found a home in the County these 48 years. Being happy, at home, with friends and family — that’s Canadian. That, a mask and a bottle of hand sanitizer.
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