Reconciliation Day

@pickjoy at Unsplash

Yesterday, I found out that I did not have to work today, in honour of Truth and Reconciliation Day in Canada.

I felt guilty because it didn’t make sense to me that I get to relax in honour of the sacrifice of Indigenous children. Shouldn’t we be working harder?

My second reaction was joy at a whole unexpected day of peace……

And then it hit me like a slap in the face.

PEACE

Peace is something we take for granted.

I woke up this morning and got to choose what I wanted to do with my day. I got to open my patio door, and lightly place my foot on the dewy grass, welcoming the sun. Coffee in hand, sitting on my couch. A blank slate of opportunity before me.

Dog walks, ice cream, maybe the beach? I live on a beautiful island and I had nothing but infinate adventures ahead of me.

I see my children emerging from their rooms, full of inspiration and ideas and the freedom to express themselves.

Suddenly, I think of how tragic it would be if someone came through the front door and told my kids that their way of life and thinking was wrong and they needed to leave our house immediately to correct it.

I would have to be held back as my babies were torn from my arms, so that they could be educated somewhere far away, about something I knew nothing of.

I would have to pack their clothes into a bag because they were leaving, and not coming back. I can’t even imagine this being the last memory of my child, who didn't make it.

The voices of these little children ripped away from their homes are too quiet. They are not filled with rage. They are filled with sadness over the loss of the life they could have had. The tears of lost moments stream down their face, and mark their souls with red. The colour of sacrifice.

They dragged these children away from their homes, absolutely sure that they were going in the right direction. They were wrong.

Tragic.

Their land, their people, and their children were raped of the lives that they deserved. Love, connection and healing were all a part of their lives before they were ripped away and told to sit in a desk and…