At the beginning of February 2019, I began my “virtual walk across Canada. I choose Prince Rupert as a starting point because I thought was this city as furthest west in Canada. (I am not a geographic wizard, so if there is a city or village that is further west, I ask both your indulgence and forgiveness for my error in judgement. It felt like a good starting point.) Each day, I tried to complete my goal of three kilometers a day. Some days, I completed more than my allocated three kilometers a day. Other days, I barely “virtually walked” a kilometer in a day. When I started my journey, I had not bought into this goal, and I did not believe that I could or would be persistent enough to do 3 km a day for 6.67 years! I never saw myself as a person who was good at follow through, especially with such a long-term goal. However, that was an aspect of this goal – to see if I could endure – even if the goal were more over five years away. I wanted to start seeing where I would be in five years, not just six months or a year from now. I wanted to start thinking long-term.
I loved watching my progression through the province of B.C.-from Prince Rupert to Terrace and beyond. There were so many interesting lessons I learned along the way. I learned that I could improve my geographic knowledge. I remember one night when I was visiting with my in-laws. My father-in-law was talking about growing up in B. C. I asked him where his family lived in B. C. He told me that I probably would not know it because it was a small northern town. I told him that I was “virtually walking” across Canada and to try me and see if I knew it. He told he was from Hazelton, B. C. I told him I knew exactly where that was because I “virtually walked|” by it. I was so proud of myself – from being geographically challenged to geographically knowledgeable!
Another lesson I learned was that you can complete anything if you keep doing every day. Like I previously said, my “virtual walk” was slow because I was not always committed to this “virtual walk” but eventually I completed B. C. It took me a year to do but I did it. I learned that with persistency and consistency that I could complete a goal. Throughout my journey, I learned that if I complete my daily, I can progress toward my end goal and achieve it. Achieving one of my mini goals helped me to learn consistency. When I completed B. C. in a year, it led me to be more consistent in completing my daily goal of three kilometers. So, in the year of 2020, I was able to “virtually walk” through Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba and end up in Ontario. I learned that if I stick to a daily goal that my larger goals will be completed.
Lastly, I was learning that I lived in interesting country-Canada! I need to give you a little backstory. I was not interested in writing about my “virtual walking” experience. So many people were virtual walking that it was becoming a common experience. I did not think that I had anything new to say or that my story was important. Then, I was watching my local news. Our local M. L. A. came on the news and advocated for regionalism regarding whether to open businesses, recreation facilities, and other amenities. According to him, if region were doing well, it could be opened while other regions stayed closed. I became concerned with this rise in regionalism. Regionalism is “a political ideology which seeks to increase the political power, influence and/or self-determination of the people of one or more subnational regions. “1. From this definition, everything sounds legit, especially for such a large as Canada. Certain people, in provinces such as Alberta and Quebec, feel underrepresented in the Canadian government. Sounds fair, right? The biggest difficulty with regionalism can lead to huge divisions and ultimately separatism. As a nation begins to divide, regions can hoard their resources or cut off their resources to other regions. For example, the feud that was created between B. C. and Alberta. B. C. refused the building of pipeline through its province. Alberta retaliated by cutting off any oil to B. C. B.C. counter-retaliated by cutting off its wine supply to Alberta. Feuds, like these types, weaken Canada as a nation and hurt our creditability in the international community. After all, what would our neighbors think? Soapbox completed! My father was born in Saskatchewan and lived in Alberta. My mother was born in Nova Scotia and eventually moved out to Alberta. As a child of interprovincial marriage, I learned to appreciate the many regions of Canada. As my mom would often say, “I am Canadian!” Therefore, as I write this blog, I want to show that our differences are what make Canada a beautiful and interesting country.
Today, I am proud to say that I passed Val-d’Or, Quebec and am heading towards Sakitawatbikak, Quebec. That is 4,561.4 km in 962 days or 60% of my journey! Over the last few years, I learned a lot about me and what I believe about myself and Canada. Ultimately, I learned that you do not have to leave your front yard to learn and grow. You can set an internal goal and grow from there!
