{ Canada } ~ 150

Canada celebrates 150 years as a Confederation.

A relatively young country compared to others on the world stage.  It was a county that was born out of fear:  after their Civil War and expansionist  'Manifest Destiny', our founding fathers were greatly concerned that Canada would be the next territory conquered by our American cousins.  An auspicious beginning to say the least.

The country has changed in many ways within the last 150 years and is markedly different from what our founding father, Sir John A Macdonald envisioned.  We are now a relatively transparent, multicultural and multilingual polity following the social and political upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s which had us re-imagining ourselves from a 'british colony' mentality towards something uniquely our own.

The Canada I celebrate and cherish is my own of course but I think it resonates with many other personal histories: two parents both sought to leave behind the 'old countries' and find something new; both came from cultures that in recent living memory squared off against each other in two world wars; yet that upbringing was shed when they came here and within Canada fell in love, married, and raised a family.  I also celebrate that Canada is, frankly, an inconsequential nation in the eyes of many - being ignored is not the worst fate.  Initially we were seen as little more than a British outpost.  Now, many in the world see us as little more than an American proxy {but are surprised to discover we are not}.  The Americans.  Our story cannot be divorced from them.  We are blessed by geography and proximity to, ironically, those same Americans we feared.  Our American cousins ensure we are never likely to be invaded anytime soon while allowing our goods have access to the largest economic and political powerhouse in world history and with that some influence on their affairs {even while we frequently bemoan their political leaders}.   Canada may be ignored in the grand scheme of world affairs but it has allowed us to get about our affairs in relative peace and tranquility. Many other nations would consider us blessed.

An illustration I did for Legion Magazine on Canadian peacekeeping and peacemaking.  Acrylic on paper.