That last one particularly sticks with me. A couple of weeks ago, while my family was driving on the 401 to Kingston for my sister’s graduation, we witnessed something I had only seen in the news. We witnessed the motorcade for Private Alexandre Peloquin, a Canadian soldier who was recently killed in Afghanistan. If you don’t know what happens with Canadian soldiers who are killed in battle, then this may sound odd that seeing black cars speeding pass me in the opposite direction for brief moment sticks with me. Its much more than that. Let me explain.

The portion of highway 401 between Trenton & Toronto has been renamed the “Highway of Heroes.” It is this stretch of highway that all Canadians killed in action is driven down, from the air force base in Trenton, to the morgue in Toronto. Every-time this horrible trek happens, something amazing happens as well. Canadians from all backgrounds, veterans & civilians, men & women, young and old, gather on the bridges above the Highway of Heroes to pay their final respects for the fallen soldiers. Some sit, most stand, some salute, some wave flags; they all remember. And that’s why that trip to Kingston sticks in my mind so much. Not just the fact that I saw the motorcade pass by, but also witness the reverence and respect my fellow countrymen had for our fallen soldiers. It was really quite something.

So never forget. Don’t only remember those who past away who made the headlines. Remember the lesser knowns and the unknowns as well. Somebody loses a son or daughter, brother or sister, friend or family, every-time someone dies.

Always remember.

No, I’m not talking about Christmas. I’m talking about change. Change in the government.

For the first time in a while (or possibly ever), Canadian politics is more interesting than American politics. A coalition government may form in the the next couple of months and the current prime minister could become the next opposition leader. All of this in the midst of a global economic crisis.

Now, what do I think about this? Do I want a coalition government? I’m not sure yet. One thing I know for sure, is we need change and a coalition government would definitely be a change. Is it the right change though? I don’t know. I’m still divided on the issue. One thing I do know for sure is that we need action, immediate action. So what in the world is Steven Harper doing proroguing parliament for 7 weeks? At a time when we need to act, the government is shutting down. I must say I am deeply disappointed that governor-general Michaëlle Jean’s decision to grant Harper’s request. Some government officials have stated that they disagree with her decision to grant the prorogue but respect her decision. I’m a little confused with those statements. How can you disagree with a decision but still respect it? Aren’t those two things the opposite of each other? Yes, disagree with the decision and still respect Michaëlle Jean, but how can you respect the decision if you disagree with it? But I digress. One reason I’ve heard (this is purely speculation, so I don’t know for sure) on why she granted Harper’s request is that he would resign if she didn’t grant his request. I really hope this isn’t true, because that is a very selfish attitude, one that you shouldn’t have when you have the most servant-leadership job in the country as prime minister. The prime minister’s job first and foremost is serving the country, not his/her own self interests.

So what we’re left with now is a country without a government and a country deeply divided. Polls are showing that Canadians are split on the issue and the recent election shows that our support is divided among 4 parties, with no real strong backing of one party. This is exactly what we can’t have right now. To be able to confront this economic challenge, we need a united front in our government. I was glad to see that 3 of the parties were able to drop partisan politics to unite together to combat this challenge, but I think this is only a good first step. It would have been much better if all 4 parties could come together to solve this problem together. For it does not only affect the politicians, or even Canadians, but this affects the entire world. Unity and action is desperately needed in this country. I can only hope in the coming 7 weeks, before parliament resumes, time and resources will be spent more on facing the issues Canada is facing rather than campaigning for or against the coalition.

United we stand, divided we fall.

P.S. for those of you who don’t know why I picked “delta” for this post’s title, “delta” is the Greek letter than represents change.

Another thing 'bout my roots, you all know Cindy Klassen right? Canada's most decorated Olympian ever? Well, she's from a Mennonite Brethern background, just like me! woohoo! What brought up this roots pride in me? Well, when I was back home for Easter this weekend, there was an old Macleans magazine from March sitting in my room and I read an article about her and her success at the Torino games. Nothing out of the ordinary in the article except that they actually mentioned (and quoted) how she was raised up in an MB church & high school and how she said her faith is the main reason for everything she does. Thought that was pretty cool seeing as most mainstream media wouldn't bother to mention those quotes because it doesn't really tell an interesting enough story (to them). I don't remember reading, hearing, or seeing any news coverage about her faith during the Olympics, only stuff about the expectations and her success. So, great job Macleans and great job Cindy!

Just want to end off with a sweet comic I read yesterday. The reason for the season: