Canada 150 - Atwood Style!
For this celebration
our town is red and white -
birthday of our nation -
we have to do it right!
Canada Day in Atwood -
the whole town is abuzz!
The rain holds off as it should -
it cannot rain because
we have planned a big parade
to celebrate this day!
Lots of effort has been made
and now it's time to play!
Sirens can be heard now
firetrucks flash their lights
parade's beginning - oh wow!
I sit and watch the sights.
Cars from every decade,
trucks and tractors too,
all with Maple Leaf displayed
it seems the thing to do.
Floats are quite creative,
one has both pool and rink,
For "our home and native"
that fits, don't you think?
Pipers pipe and horses trot
along the parade route.
Eyes all watch from chosen spot -
'cause everyone is out!
Lion's Park is busy -
activities abound.
Crowds almost make me dizzy,
the whole town hangs around.
Hundreds eat together,
they visit and they chat.
All speak of the weather -
"What do you think of that?
Rain has held off for parade
for sixty years straight!
And clear skies for fireworks!
I can hardly wait!"
Rural celebrations?
Some are bound to scoff.
But no exaggeration -
Atwood pulls it off!
Little town with big heart -
I'm glad you took me in.
Celebrating is an art -
and this town takes the win!
Sharon Flood Kasenberg, July 5, 2017
Almost a year ago I moved to a small mid-western Ontario town. After months of looking we'd found the property we were looking for, and my only reservation about making the move was going to such a small town. Atwood Ontario isn't particularly pretty. Its streets aren't lined with quaint little shops and restaurants, and it doesn't have a ton of amenities to offer. Could I be happy there? Would I go stir crazy?
I quickly learned that this town has a few things more important than a grocery store or a lot of kitschy shops. It has friendly people. It has community spirit. It has heart.
Things happen here. Community events are well attended. People take the time to get to know their neighbours. The people of Atwood care about their community and work together to make things happen here.
I've lived in a lot of different places over the years, but I've never seen a community put as much into a Canada Day celebration as this one does. An entire weekend full of events was planned months in advance. People in town decorated their yards with red and white flowers and flags and signs, and Main Street had commemorative Canada 150 banners hung out.
Thursday night kicked off the celebrations with two different parties. At the community center there was a dance with a live band geared toward older adults. Attendance wasn't quite as high as had been hoped, but those who came had a good time and I think this event will gain popularity in the coming years. Outside, in the tennis courts, there was a video dance for the young (and young at heart). Friday night was wing night at the Lion's Park. (No cooking for me!) A local band began playing at about 7:30, and a tent was set up where children could watch videos. I didn't do a head count, but there was quite a crowd. Everyone enjoyed their wings and seemed to be having fun socializing and listening to the music.
My younger son and daughter-in-law arrived from Boston on Wednesday night and were enthusiastic about going to wing night and enjoying the Canada Day celebrations with us on Saturday. I think now they're beginning to understand why we like it here so much. They met a whole lot of people and got a nice taste of the community spirit that exists here.
The parade on Saturday was a lot of fun. We live one lot over from Main Street, so I was able to haul fairly comfortable patio furniture over to a great vantage point at the corner of my street. My mother was even able to watch the parade from an upstairs window, and I was glad all of us got to see it. The crowd was pretty thick where we were sitting, and there was quite a buzz in the air before the parade began. I warned my son in advance that he'd see a lot of tractors - it's all part of the rural experience. He and his wife loved the Lion's float that had a small skating rink on it - what could be more Canadian, right? Miraculously, the grey clouds held onto their contents until a few minutes after the parade ended. In sixty one years the Atwood Canada Day parade has never been rained out - which is really kind of amazing!
Saturday night was another night I didn't have to cook supper. (How great is that? I only made supper once all weekend!) We all went to the community center for a pork chop supper. My older son doesn't even like pork chops, but he liked those pork chops! They were delicious! And when you consider the town served more dinners than it has inhabitants that's pretty impressive! After supper my mother and I sat outside waiting for the kids to finish eating so they could drive her home, and we ended up talking for almost an hour with a nice couple who live on a farm in the area. (My mother was really impressed with the friendliness of the people she met.)
Finally Saturday night came and we walked a whole ten minutes across town to see a pretty impressive fireworks display. Once again crowds were out in full force and people called out to friends and visited with one another.
The weekend was a rousing success in my opinion. I think my son and his wife got to see Atwood at its finest - celebrating together.
Canada is a very welcoming and inclusive country, and my community is very Canadian that way. They welcome the newbies. They try to be neighbourly. They pull together to make special days even more special.
Atwood does a lot of things right, but they do Canada Day best.
No comments:
Post a Comment