All Psyched Up: Our home

By Linda Hancock on July 5, 2025.

I am a proud Canadian who has to confess that I haven’t even explored our whole country. It is soooo big and soooo spread out. Brief encounters in all the provinces but Newfoundland is as far as I have travelled.

We have so much for which we can be thankful. We don’t suffer from disasters common in other areas such as tsunamis, war zones and drought. We have been spared from communism, lack of infrastructure and many plagues.

Canada is almost 10 million square kilometers of land that provides us with riches in the form of precious metals, fuels, and other natural resources. Parts are suitable for farming specialty crops of grains, fruits or vegetables. Topography includes mountainous areas, plains, forests and waterways. We experience the change of the seasons in different ways across the continent which keeps things interesting.

Our creativity and ingenuity have allowed us to use what we have to develop products for our own use and as exports to the world. Infrastructure serves us with roads, education, medical, political and other systems.

We can stand proud of the people who are recognized throughout the globe for their skills, expertise, inspiration and courage. Sports, music, business, science, art and academia all can name Canadians who have been role-models and recognized award winners.

Our military has protected us. Our aged have provided us with heritage and our youth give us a future.

We can walk, drive, fly, boat, or swim to or in any part of our land with freedom and curiosity about what lies ahead.

The cultural diversity of our citizens provides us with customs, beliefs, dance, language and values that form a mosaic to admire and respect. We are a country of people who have different faiths which we practice – some in groups and some at an individual level.

So, when I hear people talk about fear and dispute different ideas for moving forward, I am sad. Our differences make us unique and challenge us to consider options that we might otherwise have missed.

We have so much more than most people on earth and need to focus on our blessings.

This Canada Day remember the struggles that our ancestors endured to get us to where we are and commit to making this an even better homeland. The words of our National Anthem summarize what we, as people, want:

“God keep our land, glorious and free.

O Canada we stand on guard for thee.”

Dr. Linda Hancock, the author of “Life is An Adventure…every step of the way” and “Open for Business Success” is a Registered Psychologist who has a private practice in Calgary. She can be reached by email at office@drlindahancock.com

15
-14