As you know, or don't know, my hobby is following hockey.
Why?
I come from small town Canada. This is the passion of Canada. For those of you who are my friends living in Vancouver/Toronto/urban Canada unless you've driven from Vancouver to Toronto (or further east), I don't believe you truly know the country you live in. Canada is not skytrains. Canada is not rain. Canada is not Condominiums/VW Jetta's and Americanos.
This is not to hack on the "Vancouver" lifestyle. Vancouver has become the city that I love. This morning was beautiful. If you looked into the harbour downtown, Stanley park was shining amidst a small cloud and there is snow on the mountains. This is the most beaufiul landscape of any city probably in the world.
However. This is not Canada. Canada is far too vast. Far too much space. Canada is a small town and what do you do in Small Town Canada where the winter is 8 months long? You do about 3 things: Drink Beer, Play Hockey, or Curl.
Sometimes you do all three in one day.
When I was young, a lot of my friends either played hockey or were really into it. As a lad, you do everything you can to fit in, right? Well, this involved me becoming passionate about our national pastime. In my tweens, I delivered the Sudbury Star for a time and followed a certain Ontario team that was down on their luck. That particular year they made a huge trade which essentially changed their fortunes and the following year ended up in the conference final against none other then number 99.
At the time, there was talk that he was no longer so great and that the LA Kings were beatable. Well, there I am, biting my nails watching game 6 of T.O. vs. L.A. and what does Wayner do? Deflect the puck off of Dave Ellett's skate into the net to beat Felix Potvin. This tied the game.
The Leafs lost that game and then the series and LA almost beat the Canadians that year for the cup.
That's one of my memories of Wayne.
He turns 50 today.
I think what makes Wayne Gretzky so great is that he exemplifies tenacity. He shows the Canadian spirit. Innovation. Endurance. Vision. He wasn't the biggest player. He wasn't the fastest skater. He didn't even have the best shot on the team.
Yet he broke nearly every record (or all the ones that mattered) and changed how the game of hockey is played.
This to me is Canada. Wayne sets an example for all of Canada. I have read stories about how he would stay in the back yard practicing things no one had ever practised or even thought of. Like shooting the puck off the back of the net to see where it would go. Or focusing on where the puck would end up. Not where it was going. Innovation.
I'm very proud to be Canadian. We are lucky to have people like Wayne who represent this great country to the world. I'm sounding patriotic aren't I? Well it's a pretty great place! My only recommendation is that you should see it in it's vastness and entirety. Even just once so that you get a different perspective about what this place is all about.
Happy B-Day Wayne!
Love,
Marty
@martyzylstra
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