God Keep Our Land Glorious and Free! By Nina Faye Morey

How Can You Tell Someone’s Canadian?

(Answer Below)

a) They like to finish their sentences with, “Eh?”

b) You accidentally bump them and they say, “Sorry!”

c) You say you went to Timmy’s and they don’t ask, “Timmy who?”

d) All of the above.

Celebrating Canada’s Creation

Happy Birthday, Canada! It’s hard to believe you’re 150 years young. A milestone called a sesquicentennial (SES-kwuh-sen-TEN-nee-yul). In 1867, the British North American Act united four provinces to form the Dominion of Canada and a new baby nation (now the world’s second largest) was born! It took its name from the Iroquois word Kanata, meaning “village.”

Canada’s National Flag

Until I was twelve, our nation proudly hoisted the Canadian Red Ensign on its flag poles. Like the majority of Canadians at the time, I saw no reason to change it. In fact, I’d already become quite attached to this national symbol. But after much controversy, our leaders of the day chose to replace it with the Maple Leaf. This simple, stark flag didn’t appeal to me at first. But over the years it’s grown on me, and I now proudly display it on Canada’s birthday and on my luggage whenever I’m travelling.

Celebrating Canada 150 in Our Glorious Land

Our family plans to celebrate Canada’s 150^th birthday by taking advantage of Parks Canada’s free National Park pass to visit the Canadian Rockies. I never tire of their majestic splendor.

I’ve Been Almost Everywhere

One goal on my bucket list is to travel across our glorious land. My son and I have taken three WestWorld Tours together. Our first was to Churchill in 2014. On a Hudson Bay whale watching tour, we enjoyed a frolicking pod of belugas. We also spotted some polar bears on the shore, although it’s unusual to see them in the spring. During a tundra buggy tour, we adored a seal sunning itself on a rock out in the Bay.

In 2015, we took our second tour to Victoria. It was my third visit to this glorious destination. My son hadn’t travelled there since he was three, so it was all new to him. We loved visiting the Butchart Gardens, Butterfly Gardens, Craigdarroch Castle, and several other tourist attractions.

In 2016, we travelled with WestWorld to Haida Gwaii. With its unique flora and fauna, this archipelago is a fascinating destination to visit. A couple of highlights were the Golden Spruce Trail and Balance Rock.

Counting up the Canadian communities I’ve visited was fun and enlightening. I’ve been to many places in Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Ontario. I especially enjoyed travelling through the Canadian Shield and the Canadian Tundra by train—two fascinating vistas.

Canadian Places I Still Hope to Visit

Newfoundland and Labrador (especially Newfoundland's historic Viking village, L'Anse aux Meadows, in honour of my Viking ancestors, and Gros Morne National Park—both UNESCO World Heritage Sites); PEI; Nova Scotia; Ottawa’s Parliament Hill & Parliament Buildings; Niagara Falls, Ontario; Quebec; the Yukon and NWT (Whitehorse and Yellowknife).

Incredible Canadians to Celebrate

Sir John A. Macdonald, Alexander Graham Bell, Dr. Frederick Banting, Laura Secord, Tecumseh, Billy Bishop, Tommy Douglas, Terry Fox, Michael J. Fox, Rick Hansen, Margaret Atwood, Alice Munroe, Roberta Bondar, Julie Payette, Chris Hatfield.

Canadian Principles to Celebrate

Canada ranks high in the international community for its democracy, multiculturalism, civil liberties, economic freedom, freedom of speech and religious freedom. US News & World Report’s annual “Best Countries” survey ranked Canada the second best country in the world for the second consecutive year and first in its “Quality of Life” category.

O Canada!

Answer: (d) All of the Above

Photo Credits: © 2017, Nina Faye Morey

An Unexpected Celebration - Tracy Krauss

I love Canada Day and this year I was especially looking forward to the '150' celebrations. I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes down to it. Every Canada Day since I can remember I've dressed in red and white (and made the rest of the family dress appropriately, too!) and gone to a parade, a community BBQ, a festival in the park, or whatever else was happening in the community we happened to be in that year. I've had the privilege of living in a lot of different places and each town or city puts their own unique spin on their Canada Day celebrations.

Who can forget the community fish fry in Fort Smith, NWT? White fish from Great Slave Lake served hot to about 2000 residents. Yum! One of the most special Canada Days I ever experienced was the year we took our family to Ottawa - part of a cross Canada tour. It was amazing to be part of the crowd at the concert on Parliament Hill and see the fireworks over the Parliament buildings - things I had only ever seen on TV.

This year our plan was to travel to Fort St John, BC (about two hours from our home) to spend the day with our daughters and grandchildren. There were lots of special 'Canada 150' events planned and we wanted to share it with our family.

And then our plans were changed.

The Sunday previous our son was in a serious car accident on the Pine Pass. (A particularly winding section of highway in northern BC.) His injuries turned out to be minor, although he is still dealing with various aches and pains while waiting for plastic surgery on his face and nose, which were badly smashed. The driver wasn't so lucky. He died at the scene - the single dad of a 12 year old son.

Dan was our neighbour from directly across the street. We often bantered back and forth, borrowed each other's tools, and generally had a good time teasing one another. He was just that kind of guy. Always friendly and willing to lend a hand.  In fact, he brought my son more than one meal while I was in the hospital in Vancouver this spring (another story entirely) and got my son a job working on a crew replacing old rail lines. They were on their way to work together when the accident happened.

My husband was asked to conduct Dan's funeral service, even though Dan had not been a church goer. They'd had enough conversations over the fence about God and spiritual matters that his family felt he was the only choice. The date they chose? July 1st.

Of course there was no way to refuse. We didn't want to refuse! Dan was a good neighbour and friend, and the fact that he was dead while our son survived, made us profoundly grateful.

We did manage to see some fireworks later that evening, but Canada 150 pretty much passed us by. In the end it was still a memorable day, although not for the reasons we had hoped. It brought into stark clarity how blessed we are, not only because we live in such a great nation, but because God is sovereign.