Tantramar Flashback -
Here's one opinion of the Canadian winter as noted in 1768 by the French philosopher Voltaire: "France lost in one day . . . fifteen hundred leagues of ground. These fifteen hundred leagues being a frozen desert, are perhaps not really a loss. Canada has cost too much and brought in very little."
Since the official end of winter and the first day of spring (March 20) is fast approaching, this would seem to be an occasion for some seasonal reflections. I use the phrase "official end" deliberately.
As any resident of southeastern new Brunswick will know, winter can make an unscheduled appearance much later in the year. A snowstorm took place a few years ago on the Mount Allison Convocation weekend in May!
It has to be admitted that many Canadians have conflicting attitudes toward this season. For the sports-minded, skiing, skating, hockey and curling are the major recreational pursuits. By contrast, many of those who are not interested in such activities simply tend to sit back and count the days until the arrival of spring.
The Canadian poet Archibald Lampman (1861-1899) had an interesting slant on the season. He once wrote: "Winter is the time for reading and study - while summer is for loafing and dreaming."
The winter of 2010 will be long remembered for Canada's hosting of the Olympic Games. Their sucess can be attributed to the support by all levels of government and the hospitality and organizational skills displayed by the city of Vancouver and the province of Britlsh Columbia.
Well-known Canadian athlete, academic and author Bruce Kidd once eloquently explained the significance of our major winter sport - hockey - to our culture. Known nationally and internationally for his athletic pursuits, Kidd won a gold (in the 6 Miles event) and bronze medal (in the 3 Miles event) at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games and was a member of the Canadian 1964 Summer Olympics team (competing in the men's 5000 metres and men's marathon).
As Kidd expressed it: "Hockey is the Canadian metaphor, the symbol of the country's vast stretches of water and wilderness, and its extremes of climate. The player is a mark of our national struggle to civilize such a land. "
In the Feb. 16, 2010 issue of the Globe and Mail, Bruce Hutchinson, author of Canada: The Unknown Country was quoted as describing the Canadian hockey fan as: "One who becomes . . . a ravening beast, screeching for blood . . . when in fact he is just being a Canadian,"
In fairness, Hutchinson was exaggerating to make the point, that hockey plays an important role in defining what it is to be a Canadian.
One regular reader of this column said to me recently; "Why is it that we have three months of winter without a single statutory holiday . . . except when Easter arrives early?"
Why indeed? It seems to me that the Friday that precedes Heritage Day would be an appropriate time to celebrate not only hockey, but Canada's national heritage.
We need not look far to appreciate how one organization has, within the Tantramar region, been leading the way in an annual celebration of Canadian history. On Feb.13, 2010, the Tantramar Heritage Trust marked its 14th anniversary by sponsoring a series of events in celebration of regional history.
For readers who were not able to attend, the Heritage Day activities began with breakfast at the high school followed by a version of the well-known television program 'The Antiques Road Show.' The afternoon program at the Owens Art Gallery focused on the history of sports within the region. The day also included the official launch of a database - The Chignecto Isthmus: History and Culture. The Tantramar Heritage Trust is to be commended for their efforts in marking local history, even on a non-statutory holiday!
On the list of Canadian historical anniversaries, there is one noticeable gap just waiting be filled. There is no statutory holiday specifically honouring our national achievements.
I can predict that some readers are thinking "Why should there be?" Others will point to the fact that to do so "would be playing political games with history." Still others would fall back on July 1 as the appropriate time for such a celebration.
Admittedly, July 1 is the actual date of Canadian Confederation. First known as Dominion Day, and now Canada Day, it has become over the years the occasion for a number of recent important historical events, such as the inauguration of the CBC's cross-country television broadcast (1958), the flooding of the Saint Lawrence Seaway (1958), the first colour television transmission in Canada (1966) , the inauguration of the Order of Canada (1967), and the establishment of 0 Canada as the country's national anthem (1980).
By chance, other events fell on the same date, such as the first day of the Battle of the Somme in 1916. It has always been marked in Newfoundland and Labrador as Memorial Day to commemorate the Newfoundland Regiment's heavy losses during this battle in World War One.
Admittedly, the first Monday in August is also already a holiday in many parts of Canada. However, it's observed in some provinces and territories but not in others. The day is often blandly referred to as the "August Holiday," "Civic Holiday," "Provincial Day," or some other local name.
By contrast, the commemorative holiday that is being advocated in this column would have a clear focus on our local, regional and national history. The time has come for an observance of the uniqueness of the country called Canada. Clearly, mid-winter is both the season and the time for such an event. Heritage Day should be a Canadian statutory holiday.
Ideas for, or comments about Tantramar Flashbacks, may be addressed to Bill Hamilton in care of the Sackville Tribune-Post, 80 Main Street, Sackville, NB, E4L 4A7, or via e-mail at sdoherty@sackvilletribunepost.com. A number of previous Flashbacks may also be found in recent on line issues of this newspaper.
