I Am So Canadian Now!

I feel soooo Canadian today. I have taken up one of our official (or is it unofficially official?) sports – curling!

I have joined a ladies league and have embraced my new athleticism. And it IS athletic, I have the sore body to prove it. No longer will I be one of the naysayers who confusingly watch Olympic Curlers thinking, how can this be a sport? They are just throwing a rock down a big piece of ice and sweeping a broom. I can slide a bowl of chips down to the other end of my kitchen counter and sweep (occasionally) with a broom at home. What is the big deal?

LOTS! If you have never put your foot in the “hack” (yes, look at me with all the curling terminology now), bent down and slid that rock along the ice while stretching a leg out behind you and keeping your balance, then you do not know anything about how big a deal it is.

And the sweeping! You may not be doing it constantly, but you have to push hard on that broom and sweep fast. It is hard work and can leave one feeling pretty winded, believe me. And after six Ends (yes, curling terminology again), you can feel the burn.

So, here I am, tender and sore after a morning of Curling with the girls. Feeling all maple syrup, bilingual and oh so Canadian.

Eh.

Olympic Achievements

I love to watch people succeed. I love to watch people who have set a goal, worked hard and made it happen. I am thrilled for them in their moment and right there with them, even when I am not right there. I love watching people turn a failure into a stepping stone and a stumble into a minor misstep on their path to victory. I love watching people commit, endure and overcome. I love watching people succeed because it makes me believe that I can, too.

Go Canada!