Today it rained heavy in Vancouver. Since we agreed to take yesterday off instead of today, I was on my regular schedule.

At the office, Emily asked me and few other people if we wanted to go see the Remembrance Day ceremony at Victory Square which was just two blocks away from our office. I had watched it on television several times before, but had never been to an actual ceremony. So I thought, for the first time, it would be nice to be there and see with my own eyes.

With three other colleagues including Emily, I got to the Victory Square around 10:30am. There were about a few hundreds of people I guess. Like I said, it rained heavy today, and the windchill was also pretty low at the moment, so Emily and I were shivering during the whole time. Plus, my trouser cuffs were all wet since I was in my loafers, which was not very smart of me.

Nonetheless, what I liked about the ceremony was that it actually made me think about the past and the people who fought for this land and also for my homeland Korea. I mean, if it wasn’t for the ceremony, I don’t think I would have paid much attention to the actual meaning of the day other than simply remembering to put a poppy on my chest.

Looking at the veterans and soldiers marching, passing by me, I thought it must had been difficult for some of them to stay out there for more than an hour in this weather. Some were old and some were very old. None of them looked spiritless, though.
It was solemn and honorable I’d say.

After the ceremony, I felt like I was Canadian. Felt somewhat patriotic to this country, my 2nd homeland.

If you missed it, you can watch the highlights at CTV.ca or click here.