Social Conscience

We've been back in Canada for a little over two months now. Things have been progressing, but not exactly smoothly. We've often been lying in our not King size bed after another day of chaos, confusion and two bedroom condo claustrophobia wondering if we did the right thing. A few reminders in the last week or so, and confirmation that we did good.

The 2006 quarter was released this spring with a coloured ribbon. A pink one. With the hope of increasing breast cancer awareness in Canadians and to spread a message of hope and support for anyone fighting the disease.

Responsible Advertising. Until lately, any TV that McKay has watched has been on commercial free toddler channels. Now that his horizons have expanded a little, or rather, his horizon wakes up an hour or so before ours does on Saturday, we have to be pretty on the ball to explain some of the things he sees. However, last weekend, we saw this. (click on photo to be taken to video)


We were stunned into silence for the minutes it took to watch it, I even put my book down. The silence held for a good 10 seconds after the clip had aired. Would this, could this ever air on American TV?





Canadian Heritage Minutes: For those of you who live here, these are just background noise. You don't think twice about them, but you learn something with each one. We had a date night a few weeks back, and went to see a movie. During the 15 minutes or so of previews about cell phones, buying popcorn, movie trivia etc, was a hokey vignette on Canadian heritage and the implementation of the pension plan. Take home message here was that this was being played during PRIME advertising time. For free, no one paid for it to be played, no one made any money off of it. (These really are very very sappy/melodramatic, but I've become fond of them again, stay tuned for a post JUST on my favourites and Hinterland Who's Who too!)

I think it is experiences like these that pull us together as a country and have been essential in forming our national identity. We're often mocked (no, really, it's true) because we are so FIERCELY Canadian. I don't think it's superiority, or even inferiority that is responsible. I think it's parental pride. When I saw these things, and knew they were Canadian, I felt the same bubble of joy as when my sweet sweet boy offers to share his (disgustingly grimy) blanket with a crying child from his class.