One year ago, Jake, Jonathan and I stood on Old Scugog Rd., waiting for the CP Holiday Train to roll in with Nonna, Pop and Grandma. We were so excited at the prospect of having a new holiday tradition that we could have for all the years to come.
We were nestled in to the overflowing crowd, freezing cold but happy that we were surrounded by so many familiar faces from our town. Mr. & Mrs. Yellowlees (Jake's Sunday School teacher) were right behind us, Corey, Leanne and Emma were nearby and lots of people from St. Paul's United were waving to us here and there. It was an amazing night. The train pulled up with all the lights twinkling, Santa waved from a coach window. The boxcar doors opened up and a handful of Canadian performers sang Christmas carols with all of us in the crowd singing along. It really was a special night and we thought that we would be standing with the same people the following year to celebrate Christmas 2006 in the same magical way.
Fast forward one year to 2006 and Jake, Diane and I were lucky enough to discover that the same train makes a stop in Calgary. We had decided that the twins would take a pass on this event, as there is a lot of standing around and waiting.. not their strong points. The train pulled up and it was just as beautiful as the year before. Lisa Brokop and Wide Mouth Mason performed a few songs and it was a pretty good show.
It must be said that while I was standing there (listening to Diane compare how much better our home-town is compared to Calgary), though I tried to appreciate the experience of the show and the excitement of all the kids enjoying the performance, I couldn't help but feel the absence of my family back home and wished they could be there to enjoy the train with us. I know we can't keep comparing our new lives to what we had before, back home. There's no point. This is our new home and its benefits outweigh those in Ontario. But I'd be lying if I said that last night I preferred standing at a Calgary train track, instead of Bowmanville's.It sure helps to know that Bowmanville doesn't even get to see the Holiday Train this year, as it made its stops elsewhere along the route. Na-na-na-nah-na-na. I guess living in the big city has its advantages.
1 comment:
I would just like to clarify that I wasn't saying how much better bowmanville was, I was saying that when something like the holiday train comes to a small town, it is a bigger deal than when it comes to a big city like calgary because there is nothing else to do in a small town.
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