Discussions

I've had the good fortune over the last 2+ weeks of pulling up anchor and taking a European holiday in order to recharge the batteries... spending a few days in each of London, Nice (France), Rome and Venice. Without getting into too many of the fine details I'll just say that it was a fun 16 days with plenty of interesting sights, people and of course food!  
 
Above all of the material things, when I go on a holiday I go in search of new perspective- To see and appreciate parts of the world that I haven't seen, and to find new ways to appreciate who I am and where I come from. I found those a-plenty at the traditional tourist spots in each of the cities I was in, but it wasn't until I boarded an Air Canada jet at Heathrow airport in London yesterday morning for the trip home that I was smacked over the head with the one thing that on-average defines Canada above all of the traditional symbols that we associate ourselves with day-in and day-out: We're pretty damn nice! After spending a half month outside of the Canadian bubble and slowly getting pulled into other cultures, it's easy to lose sight of what a Canadian is (probably only ran into about three in total). After what must have been no more than fifteen minutes on that flight, I'd heard enough sincere please's and thank-you's from passengers and staff alike... heard enough comments made with just a hint of a modest tone... seen enough people making sure they weren't getting in the way of others... to fully appreciate what it is that makes us unique. I'm not talking about the type of eager-to-please kindness that comes from insecurity or the want to be liked, just a general ingrained way of living because it seems like the right way to be.  
 
Don't get me wrong, many (if not most) people were very accomodating on the trip when they had to be but there's a very noticable difference in the average Canadian's demeanor and our willingness to go out of our way to be kind even when it isn't necessarily solicited.  
 
It'd be naive to think that everyone here is always nice and that every single person thinks about the consequences of their words and actions on others, and sometimes you definitely do have to put yourself first, but I think I've finally seen first-hand what it means to be Canadian.  
 
The next time I get into a "fight" with someone else at a 4-way stop that insists that I should go first when I'm pretty sure it's actually their turn, or the next time the person entering a store before me stops an extra second to hold the door, I'll be taking a step back for a second to appreciate just how lucky we are to live in a land where your average person is willing to put you before themselves from time to time. These are the people that make Canada Canada, one heck of a place to call home!