It was March 1980, and we were driving through Jacksonville, Florida on “The 95″ heading towards Disney World, which then was not even ten year’s old. Excited as I was to experience Walt’s version of what a “Magic Kingdom” should look like, just getting out of the cold and snow of a particularly harsh New Brunswick winter was magic kingdom enough for me.
Cue the palms and piña coladas — Canadian flags too!
During our drive down the East Coast that March break, Canadian flags were everywhere. Just a few weeks before — on January 28, 1980 — news broke that Canada had helped six American diplomats escape from Iran during the Iranian Hostage Crisis.
The crisis began a few months before, on November 4, 1979, when supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini, leader of the Iranian Revolution, took over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran capturing more than 60 American diplomats and citizens and holding 52 of them for the next 444 days. Canada had helped six diplomats evade capture by hiding them at the home of Canadian diplomat John Sheardown, under the protection of Canada’s ambassador, Ken Taylor. It was a big moment for Canada internationally.
Driving into Jacksonville, I discovered just how big. Realizing their city sits directly in the path of Interstate 95 — the main north-south migration route for Canadians seeking fun, sun and surf — the good people of Jacksonville had displayed “Thank You Canada” and “We Love You” signs and Canadian flags from office buildings, overpasses and apartment balconies, anywhere they thought “their friendly neighbours to the north” might see them.
A softie for such public displays of American affection for Canada, I was sure maple syrup was coursing through my veins. Was that Tom Thompson’s Red Maple I saw in my imagination as I steered south towards Orlando? Had Gordon Lightfoot’s Canadian Railroad Trilogy come on the radio at that moment, I would have had to pull over.
I thought about this experience this past Canada Day as I read an article by Donald Wright, who teaches Canadian and American politics at UNB in Fredericton. The piece, called Flag, provides a look not only into how the maple leaf became one of our most iconic national symbols but also how our flag — The Maple Leaf — is viewed from various Canadian perspectives.
Wright’s article is one of 22 thoughtful, insightful and amusing chapters in a recently released book called Symbols of Canada (Toronto: Between the Lines, 2018). Edited by Michael Dawson, Catherine Gidney and Wright, the book focuses on Canadian symbols — everything from The Last Spike, canoes and maple syrup to totem poles, Tim Hortons and Laura Secord.
Not only is it a great read; it’s also a terrific way to work up an appetite. I like that in a book. After I finished the chapter called Poutine, I drove to Smoke’s Poutinerie downtown for a treat. Perfect. Smoke’s is mentioned in the book.
Steering my car into the drive-thru at Tim Hortons on the way home, I figured a maple-glazed donut — perhaps one adorned with the flag in honour of Canada Day — would also be perfect. I probably should have read the chapter called Universal Health Care first, I think after I place my order.
Considering our beloved Maple Leaf is not even 55 years old, and is regarded as one of the most recognizable flags in the world, it seems all of the political drama, backroom dealing and media frenzy our country went through to get it was worth it. Where would we be without it? And since it so perfectly embodies the spirit of Canada, where would the world be without it?
Reading Wright’s account of the rancour and public debate surrounding the new flag, I got to thinking about the first time it flew above Parliament Hill. It was February 15, 1965, and I, along with millions of Canadians, watched it on TV. Coming just three weeks after the death of Winston Churchill and the international state of mourning that followed, the raising of the Maple Leaf above the Peace Tower signalled to the world that Canada had come of age.
Watching the event on YouTube more than half a century later still inspires. For me, the raising of that flag was, and is, a transcendent symbol of the Canadian spirit. The Maple Leaf reminds me of how blessed we Canadians genuinely are and how sacred our most cherished symbols are. In a world that moves with electronic precision, it’s easy to forget that.
A nod of thanks to the editors and contributors of Symbols of Canada for reminding us and for putting together a fine book that will continue to make me consider the Canadian symbols I cherish. It’s fun, beautifully written and attractively designed too, one of those books that should be in every Canadian front room, porch and cottage.
Reading it brought back many inspiring Canadian moments for me, not the least of which was the image of those Canadian flags and signs welcoming us to Jacksonville on that March day long ago.
“Thank you Canada,” they said. “We love you.”
[Symbols of Canada is available at local bookstores, including Westminster Books, where it’s flying off the shelves. More are on the way. A Fredericton icon, Westminster Books symbolizes the New Brunswick capital’s rich literary traditions.]
