EDITOR’S NOTE: In conjunction with Canada’s Sesquicentennial in 2017, members of the Manitoulin Writers’ Circle are crafting stories and poems to pay tribute to our country on this pivotal milestone birthday.
O Canada
by Ev Cardiff
So, Ms. Canada, you have come to me in search of enlightenment? You want Madam Grizelda to take a peek into her crystal ball for you or ask her cards for guidance? You are curious about what the fates have in store for you as you prepare to celebrate your 150th birthday as a nation? I shall try to clarify a few truths that a youngster such as yourself would do well to understand and heed.
This auspicious occasion is occurring in 2017, the year of the Rooster, according to ancient Chinese astrology. Rooster years are not without challenges and turbulence both on the world’s stage and at home. There will be much posturing and flexing of military muscle internationally, although some of this is just to impress. The increased unrest among minorities over longstanding resentments will be unsettling, and much hard work and effort must be expended to soothe the troubled waters and settle their demands. There will be some splendid achievements and exciting new discoveries in space and medical research, but not without much hard work and diligence.
As one born in the more gentle and gracious year of the Rabbit, and under the Tarot card of the Empress, my dear Ms. Canada, you will not be completely comfortable with the heady pace and bristling activity of the year. But there is much to be learned that will stand you in good stead in the centuries ahead. You are very young yet, but with your inquiring mind and amiable nature you can gain valuable skills and experience to build upon. An area which requires care is finance, and this is not a year to be lax. Transactions must be scrutinized, impeccable records must be kept, and you must check carefully anything that you do not understand.
The world is revolving as it should, you know, in spite of all the atrocities its citizens perpetrate upon each other. As it is now, so it has always been and so it shall remain for many generations to come. Strife and dissension, wars and corruption, hatred and greed may prevail, but there are also moments of beauty, pockets of peace, deeds of greatness and occasional glimmerings of knowledge, wisdom and truth. There is nothing new under the sun. Nations come and go as the sands of time drift across the universe, and each in turn takes its place upon the world’s stage for awhile.
You, Ms. Canada, are tiptoeing upon the brink of womanhood. You have shown yourself to have warm, caring motherly traits for one so young, your landscape is rich and fertile, and your bounty could ease the hunger and suffering of the world. Your destiny is not to go forth and do battle but to remain on the periphery, like a Mother, waiting to welcome the lost and to heal the wounded.
A cycle for you is now almost finished. It is time for you to lead worthy projects to their logical conclusions and put an end to futile enterprises as very soon new ideas and tasks will be clamoring for your attention. Once your birthday has passed you will be seeking new roles to play and investigating options to make the world a better and kinder place. Do not commit to anything until it has been tested and found to be worthy of your attention. Be vigilant. All around you there will be dark clouds of misery and evil, but do not be drawn into them. Use your maternal traits of warmth and wisdom and wait for the sunshine to return, as it surely will.
According to my cards, the spinning of the wheel of time will uncover the new direction you are to follow. With your new maturity and insight, with your innate tact and diplomacy, you will be forging business and commerce in unexpected quarters. Other nations will see you with new eyes and respect your womanly presence upon the world’s stage, not as a raucous or pompous force bellowing for attention, but as a strong, wise and gracious nation offering meaningful help.
The next 150 in the calendar of mankind will pass in the blink of an eye, but as the mists clear in my crystal ball I can see you, Ms. Canada, standing tall and content in 2167, with heart and mind in balance. You will be the glorious nation you were meant to be, and well prepared to usher in a new and very different way of living together upon this planet.