It feels these days as though Canada, and Toronto, are under siege. It has been an increasingly stressful, increasingly embattled ten years in this country, being as we are maybe the last outpost of old-fashioned liberal democracy.
So I revisited a promotional video that was created by J Walter Thompson, the venerable ad agency, way back in 2017, to remind myself how lucky I am to live in Canada, in Toronto, this marvelous, multi-cultural, much maligned city that has defined my worldview and my life.
This clip brought tears to my eyes on first viewing, and it did again today. Today I wish for myself and my fellow Canadians that we will hang on to the vision of this improbable country, hold on tightly with both hands and never let go, as Pierre Trudeau did, in the 1980’s.
We will not be swallowed up by the US, we will not betray our ideals of social democracy and liberalism, we will set an example of progress in how we approach the world, our history both good and bad, and each other.
Hold fast with open 💕. We’ll get through this.
“The Views Are Different Here”