Jacques Rogge of the International Olympics Committee officially declared the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games "closed" yesterday evening - and as cliche and cheesy as it may sound, although the official competition may be over, the (Canadian) Olympic spirit can never be declared closed.
In Canada, the 2010 Olympics unleashed a patriotism that was unprecedented here in our country. Don't get me wrong - we are a proud nation- but our flag-waving and anthem singing is usually restrained. It's funny because south of our border a person who lacks patriotism is villainized and declared Un-American, and dressing up in the American Flag is not abnormal.
But here in Canada, we typically require a very witty beer or donut commercial to unleash our national pride.
Not anymore. I am sure we will remain the humble patriots we have always been, but no longer will we mix hesitation with humbleness. These Olympics demonstrated once again that above all, we as a people have commonalities that connect us - and that we are capable of anything, especially greatness. My hope for this realization is that we can now transcend this knowledge into collective decision-making and healthy dialogue in subject matter aside of sport and competition. Only time will tell if this will happen - but as the Olympics have shown me, anything is possible.
GO CANADA GO!
xo
G
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