My family is proudly Canadian. Always have been, always will be. We recently relocated from central Ontario to Victoria after my husband was posted to CFB Esquimalt.
We were excited that all four of our children would be attending John Stubbs Memorial School as it seemed like a very well-organized and involved school. Imagine my surprise when my children explained to me that they did not recognize the national anthem each day.
When I asked around to other parents, they explained to me that they did play the anthem at assemblies.
As pleased as I am that this has changed at our school, I’m left feeling perplexed as to why the anthem is only being played once per week.
In a time when we ought to be teaching our children about respect (and often complaining of a generational lack of) and the privilege of living in a free country, we are instead, allowing them to assume that freedom comes without a price.
It would seem that we are forgetting a few things: John Stubbs Memorial School was named after a man who was killed in action protecting the freedom of his country. He died at 31-years-old in the icy waters of the English Channel, singing to his crew.
I would love to know the number of students who attend our school and have a parent(s) in the military. We live in Canada where we have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Should we not recognize this whenever we can?
Perhaps a field trip to a country that is under dictator rule would remind us of how fortunate we are to live in a country that allows us to exercise our rights to not pay respect to the flag.
I believe that we have a duty to the generation that we are raising and it is to teach them that they must not take for granted the freedoms in which they are allowed.
I know that I don’t want my country to one day be led by adults who don’t even know the words to our national anthem.
Samantha Taylor
Colwood