•9:49 AM
He pulled into the parking lot and saw the line of waiting customers through the window. He hates waiting, but this was important. He grabbed the empty bottles from the trunk and took his place in line behind a chatty fellow.
"Guess we all had the same idea, at the same time," the man commented.
"Yeah ... it's like we all have something important to do this afternoon," Jonesy added. "At about three o'clock." The stranger chuckled and agreed. What they both knew was that the biggest game in Canadian hockey history was about to take place, and it would be almost impossible to enjoy without a nice cold beer. Plus, it might help to calm their nerves.
"I just came from the grocery store," the man shared. "People were wearing Team Canada hockey jersies, and high-fiving each other in the aisles. It was quite a scene."
Both men grabbed their box of beer, hesitated slightly, then decided to skip the high-five. Each knew how the other felt. We all felt the same.
Hockey pulls people together in our country; and not just during the Olympics, but every Saturday afternoon at arenas everywhere. Could you feel the excitement on Sunday? I thought our television was going to burst ... either with the pride exuding from athletes in Vancouver or from the anticipation of one of those hockey games that will go down in history. Hockey history.
And, the hockey game did not disappoint.
Have you ever hosted a really big party? Like, a huge party. The biggest party I have ever organized was my wedding. I imagine, it is the same for most people ... unless you are a party planner, which I think would be a super fun job. I had different coloured file folders for each aspect of my wedding ... the dress, the flowers, the food, and so on. Yes, every single person who knew about them, made fun of me. But I didn't care because I knew where every piece of information about my wedding could be located ... receipts, pick-up times, dates, etc. And, my wedding went off without one glitch ... except that we ran out of time for a receiving line, so I spent the reception trying to ensure that I thanked each and every person for joining in our celebration. But the most important thing was that everyone had a great time ... and I know this because people made comment about it for years. One time, a friend remarked that she wished she had known me when I got married because she had heard such great things about our wedding.
It seems as though Canada hosted a great party. I think people had fun in Vancouver and Whistler, and they will talk about their experiences at the 2010 Winter Games for some time to come. Memories were made, friendships developed, records broken. Canada hosted an unforgettable party. Celebrities were interviewed and had wonderful things to say about our country ... the atmosphere, the people, the beauty of it. The Canadian people were said to be friendly, and helpful; the support for their athletes and the pride for their country was something not seen before. The same passion and enthusiasm could be found throughout the city. And it was all done without flaunting heavy artillary and with a smile on our faces.
Makes you feel good to be Canadian, doesn't it?
I was thinking about our country. We have so many wonderful things in our vast land; things that we take for granted, I think. Our country borders on two different oceans; we have an incredible stretch of mountains; we have an astounding bounty of farm land, rich soil for producing the food we eat. We have a thriving beer industry ... huge corporations, but also many small award-winning microbreweries, like Walkerville, right here in Windsor. Don't forget about the wineries that can be found throughout Canada. Jonesy and I thought it would make a fun holiday to travel around to all the different microbreweries and wineries ... learning about the process as well as the areas in which these business thrive. Fishing industry. Theatres. French culture ... we are a country with two official languages. Are there any other countries who can boast that? I am sure there are many other things about Canada that I have forgotten on my list. But, I can assure you that, if you want to go on a vacation, there are wonderful places to visit right here in Canada. There is no reason to leave "home" ... just go exploring.
I hope that the visitors from around the world enjoyed getting to know Canada a little bit. And, I hope they enjoyed the hockey game, too.
"Guess we all had the same idea, at the same time," the man commented.
"Yeah ... it's like we all have something important to do this afternoon," Jonesy added. "At about three o'clock." The stranger chuckled and agreed. What they both knew was that the biggest game in Canadian hockey history was about to take place, and it would be almost impossible to enjoy without a nice cold beer. Plus, it might help to calm their nerves.
"I just came from the grocery store," the man shared. "People were wearing Team Canada hockey jersies, and high-fiving each other in the aisles. It was quite a scene."
Both men grabbed their box of beer, hesitated slightly, then decided to skip the high-five. Each knew how the other felt. We all felt the same.
Hockey pulls people together in our country; and not just during the Olympics, but every Saturday afternoon at arenas everywhere. Could you feel the excitement on Sunday? I thought our television was going to burst ... either with the pride exuding from athletes in Vancouver or from the anticipation of one of those hockey games that will go down in history. Hockey history.
And, the hockey game did not disappoint.
Have you ever hosted a really big party? Like, a huge party. The biggest party I have ever organized was my wedding. I imagine, it is the same for most people ... unless you are a party planner, which I think would be a super fun job. I had different coloured file folders for each aspect of my wedding ... the dress, the flowers, the food, and so on. Yes, every single person who knew about them, made fun of me. But I didn't care because I knew where every piece of information about my wedding could be located ... receipts, pick-up times, dates, etc. And, my wedding went off without one glitch ... except that we ran out of time for a receiving line, so I spent the reception trying to ensure that I thanked each and every person for joining in our celebration. But the most important thing was that everyone had a great time ... and I know this because people made comment about it for years. One time, a friend remarked that she wished she had known me when I got married because she had heard such great things about our wedding.
It seems as though Canada hosted a great party. I think people had fun in Vancouver and Whistler, and they will talk about their experiences at the 2010 Winter Games for some time to come. Memories were made, friendships developed, records broken. Canada hosted an unforgettable party. Celebrities were interviewed and had wonderful things to say about our country ... the atmosphere, the people, the beauty of it. The Canadian people were said to be friendly, and helpful; the support for their athletes and the pride for their country was something not seen before. The same passion and enthusiasm could be found throughout the city. And it was all done without flaunting heavy artillary and with a smile on our faces.
Makes you feel good to be Canadian, doesn't it?
I was thinking about our country. We have so many wonderful things in our vast land; things that we take for granted, I think. Our country borders on two different oceans; we have an incredible stretch of mountains; we have an astounding bounty of farm land, rich soil for producing the food we eat. We have a thriving beer industry ... huge corporations, but also many small award-winning microbreweries, like Walkerville, right here in Windsor. Don't forget about the wineries that can be found throughout Canada. Jonesy and I thought it would make a fun holiday to travel around to all the different microbreweries and wineries ... learning about the process as well as the areas in which these business thrive. Fishing industry. Theatres. French culture ... we are a country with two official languages. Are there any other countries who can boast that? I am sure there are many other things about Canada that I have forgotten on my list. But, I can assure you that, if you want to go on a vacation, there are wonderful places to visit right here in Canada. There is no reason to leave "home" ... just go exploring.
I hope that the visitors from around the world enjoyed getting to know Canada a little bit. And, I hope they enjoyed the hockey game, too.
inspired
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1 comments:
Well stated! We can all be proud to live in "the land of the free and the home of the brave"!