Day 4 - 175 -- Thinking of Home

I've been thinking of home the past few days. Talking to family and friends out there gets me wishing the country were smaller so I could drive out for the weekend. Canada is huge -- the second largest nation in the world. I've traveled from the far west to the far east and hope to get north someday soon. That means I've been to all 10 provinces from BC to Newfoundland and Labrador. I've lived in four of these. There are many places I'd like to visit again or for the first time in each province along with getting to the three territories.

I grew up, went to school and worked in Saskatchewan. It is still home in my heart. I've said many times that I'd rather have the -30C weather in the winter than the meter deep snow falls of the Maritimes <smile>. I do like having a full three months for each season, though. The prairies see Spring and Fall for only a few weeks. Having three months of each season is great, since Spring and Fall are my favourites. I miss being able to see great distances. Even looking out on the water one can't see as far as on land in a drier climate. The sky is huge -- about 75% of the view. The lights of towns and cities are visible at night so as one drives along the highway, the settlements can be seen. I never felt alone with that. I've seen the lights of Regina and Moose Jaw from just south of Saskatoon. It is a 2-3 hour drive to get to either city from there. So, while people make fun of the flatness and insist it is nothingness, there are amazing things to see and do on the prairies. Watching storms move across the horizon, coming across an enormous river valley while driving along (there are several of these that just appear -- gorgeous), and seeing the aurora borealis dance across the sky -- are but a few things I miss. Listing them all would take a lot of space and you'd stopped reading before I stopped writing. <smile>

Tonight I'm sharing two songs with lyrics that describe the prairies. The first one is about Saskatchewan (with a few Alberta places mentioned). This one is performed by a group of young men from Winnipeg, though they did live in Regina for a while when getting established. The second is about Alberta, sung by a fellow from that province. This one deals with traveling for rodeo events. The performers for each song have won several Juno Awards. The music genres are decidedly different, yet each song encompasses the love for the land. Enjoy!

Running Back to Saskatoon -- The Guess Who

Hurtin' Albertan -- Corb Lund