Ok, so this is the best explanation I have for where the idea of this adventure came from and what I truly hope to get out of it. I will try to keep it a little shorter than a novel.
I was recently having a conversation with a friend of mine. We were discussing the state of the world today and how it seems like regardless of where you go, it really is difficult to find someone who will hold a door for you, or give a quick wave if you let them into traffic or even just a simple thank you. people are in such a hurry to get where they are going these days that they forgot to stop and take a minute to (as they say) "smell the roses". The simple things in life like a smile or a thank you or even a heartfelt compliment to a total stranger are all too quickly disappearing from society. I used to be so proud to call myself a Calgarian. I couldn't believe the difference in the people from other Cities to my own. It used to be a city of such friendliness and hospitality. However, in the last few years the population has almost doubled and it seems as though the more people you get in one area the more rude and uptight they become. Of course, this opened up a hole new can of worms for us when we started talking about why that is. Why people become angry in heavily populated areas and why racism, sexism, homophobia, agoraphobia well, maybe not agoraphobia :-) just trying to lighten the mood as most people don't like to talk about these kinds of issues. Anyway, all the ism's and phobias seem to be at an all time high the closer you get to the metropolitan areas. We had a few disagreements in that department, however we did manage to agree that it is the political ideologies and not the people themselves that are causing such chaos and mayhem throughout Canada and the United States. Oooops, did I just talk about politics :-/
She, being an American was extremely candid about how she was feeling like Americans were hated, pigeon holed and even discriminated against because the rest of the world thinks of them as rude, arrogant, ignorant and self centred. And why Canadians were thought of as so friendly and open. "her words, not mine." :-) Which once again brought us back to why that is. We all know there are some not so nice people everywhere we go. But we also know there are some really great people all over the world. People who are kind and caring and respectful and would give anything to see this world in a much better place than it is right now. Americans and Canadians included. We managed to agree once again that Americans are ahead of all the kids in school when it comes to the media. The rest of the world is not shown what a true American is, they are shown what I have dubbed as a "Media American" The rest of the world sees two countries not standing united but falling divided. Yet the "Media American" is proud of their county and happy with it the way it is. Of course the rest of the world is going to look at that and wonder why. Why are Americans and Canadians alike so proud of a place that is so obviously segregated and two sided.
This is what we came up with.
I am proud to be a Canadian because of what the rest of the world is told we stand for. She is proud to be an American for what the rest of the world doesn't see.
So there you have it. The conversation which sparked my all too vivid imagination.
This venture, not having a political agenda; I am sure will end up that way. Perhaps that is what is needed. I am not a political figure. In fact, ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you I stay as far away from politics as I possibly can :-) I am not a person of great influence nor am I someone who pays particularly close attention to persons of great influence. I really am just your average citizen. I am someone who truly believes that the class system is so far out of control that it's time we take a good hard look at what purpose it actually serves. I am someone who believes that this world would have a completely different outlook if the little guy had more of a voice. No not short people. But I can honestly say that world can be kind of scary when you are always looking up at it ;-)
I may have gone a little off track but I know it will all come full circle in due time.
So, to put an end to this novel I will simply say that my goal for this trip and what I truly hope to get out of it is this...
Prove to myself and anyone else who is following this endeavour, that there are people all over these two great Countries of ours who are in fact, kind and caring and frustrated with the way the rest of the world perceives us. Most of all I need to see for myself that there is hope, that there is a chance that we can turn this world around and that it's not too late. If I get nothing else out of this, I want to know that I have at least educated myself on what it means to truly be a Canadian citizen and what it truly means be an American citizen. I want to know that I know what I know and not what I hear. tee hee, that was a fun sentence to write :-)
I am looking forward to any and all comments to this particular blog. For or against...bring them on. I am excited to hear your views as everyone should have a voice!
Thank you
Margo
