A Patriotic Moment

That’s me with a Mountie. The picture was snapped up on Parliament Hill on Canada Day. I thought it would be fun to have a photo of me posing with such a notable Canadian symbol to show some of the students in Japan.

As I was looking at the picture, a funny realization hit me. For the next year, while I am living and teaching in Japan, I too will be a symbol of Canada. Yes, I am about to join the ranks of the RCMP, the maple leaf, and the beaver. (In her natural habitat, the Odelia can be found snacking on granola bars and producing interviews.)

Speaking of the beaver, there’s a Canadian symbol that needs to be presented with a little bit of context.

Two weeks ago, I went to the Aboriginal Experience on Victoria Island here in Ottawa with a Japanese woman named Harumi. There was food to try, and dancing, and tours. And, there was a pile of pelts visitors could look at and touch. Well, we pulled out the beaver pelt. Harumi looked at it, touched it. The conversation went sort of like this:

“What’s this?”
“Fur from a beaver.”
“A beaver?”
“Yes, the animal is a symbol of Canada. Look, it’s on the back of the Canadian nickel.”
“That’s from a beaver!?!?”
“Yes.”
“But it’s so small. I thought the beaver was MUCH bigger.”

Ah yes, the mighty beaver. He can cut down trees and dam up rivers, we name snacks after parts of his body, and his image adorns our currency. He’s even credited as being one of the main reasons Europeans were so gosh darn interested in this land to begin with. But, he’s still a rodent. And, when he’s depicted with tree stumps and logs…
… those aren’t redwoods he’s standing next to.

Then again, maybe beefing up the beaver’s image isn’t such a bad idea. I come from Canada, land of the mighty beaver. I saw one once in the forest and live to tell the tale…