Home Sweet Home
by
Donna Kollee
I've often heard the saying "the personal is political" but I never
really understood what it meant. It wasn't until the time when I was the
farthest from home that I finally understood what it meant to call Canada
home and the true meaning of the old saying became clear.
I went to Athens, Greece at the end of March to debate at the Harvard
Model United Nations Debating Tournament. Until I boarded the plane, I had
never left North America. I had head stories about the reception of
Canadians abroad, but I never really believed them. To me,Canada was home,
just an average place. Sure, I knew that we were luckier than many other
people of the world, but I always took the lifestyle, culture, environment
and way of life here as a given, as something that was the same everywhere,
with minor variations. How quickly I learned that I had taken my
construction of "normal" and "ordinary" for granted...
From the moment the plane landed in Athens, I saw crowded city streets,
buildings so close you could lean out the window of one and touch the other,
and evidence of overpoplation. It made me realize how much space we have in
Canada.
As we drove to our hotel, the palm trees, the sweeping harbour and the
orange trees scattered throughout the city caught my eye. At that moment I
understood the beauty of Niagara Falls, the Great Lakes and the Niagara
Escarpment that visitors to the Niagara Region talk about. Until then, they
were just tourist sites.
When we saw police officers carrying AK-47s in the subway, the entire
military on parade and a police sweep of the harbour area, it became clear
that living in a de-militarized society where one is free to move about is a
right we are fortunate to enjoy.
When people of Athens blamed crime on Albanians and Romanians and efforts
were made to remove them from the city, I saw how xenophobia can rip a
society apart and gave silent thanks for the relative tolerance back home.
When shopkeepers and the staff at our hotel treated me more courteously
and wanted to talk to me after learning I was Canadian and not American, I
felt proud that I came from a country associated with friendliness and
peace.
When we stood in awe at the Acropolis and on Mount Lycebattus, the youth
of Canada became clear and I knew how important it is to learn from the past
to make the future better.
When I talked to people from Serbia about their political situation, or
to Turks about the earthquake, or to Americans about healthcare, it became
evident that through dialogue we learn about each other and this is the only
way we are ever going to forge the bonds of peace.
When I tried Ouzzo, sampled unpronouncable foods and listened to
traditional Greek music I was grateful for the opportunity to try new things
and to become a little more worldly.
In the originator of democracy, I understood suddenly that democracy is
not easy and that what we have within Canada requires work and vigilance to
maintain. I also realized that it is only through experiencing the "other"
that one can develop an appreciation for all of the things so easily taken
for granted. Its a little sad that I had to go so far from home to
appreciate home...but I'd do it again in a moment.