(NOTE: I have just noticed that my writing “production” has severely declined from previous months. August was a difficult month, in more than one way. I have t\used the time off, however, to think about new, fresh ideas for the BH blog. I also plan to bring back old features, like the Poetry Corner, the Music Corner, the Photographer’s Corner, etc. I also plan to bring back the Featured BH Resident of the Week – so be on the lookout, when you least expect it I will be taking your pictures and will whip out my mike to interview you! I could also REALLY, use your suggestions and help. This blog belongs to the residents of BH as much as it “belongs” to me. I would love to hear from you with story ideas, photographs and even articles. So please stay tuned. Thanks.)
Just the other day I was walking around BH when I ran into Leo Eppenberger. Leo has been with us at BH since January of this year. Leo is a budding builder (look at the DOGS MANOR that he installed for BH’s growing canine corps) and a darned good photographer with his own photo studio.
While walking around BH we came upon the Canadian flag that proudly flies over BH’s main area. It was then that Leo asked me why there was a maple leaf on the Canadian flag. I really did not know the answer and was tempted to make some sort of off-the-cuff remark like, “Canadians use a lot of maple syrup.” (When President Obama visited Canada earlier this year, he was treated to authentic maple syrup…yummy!).
I did not want to sound silly, so I decided to research the story of how the maple leaf came to be part of the Canadian flag. This is what I learned:
The Canadian National Flag, also known as the Maple Leaf, and l'Unifolié (French for "the one-leafed"), was adopted by the Canadian Parliament on October 22, 1964, and was proclaimed into law by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on February 15, 1965. The Canadian Flag is a red flag, twice as long as it is wide. In the center of the flag, there is a white square, with a single red stylized eleven-point maple leaf centered in the white square.
The colors red and white used in the Canadian flag are the same as those colors used in the Union Jack (UK). Red and white have been the national colors of Canada since 1921 (when King George V proclaimed them on the recommendation of the Canadian Government).
As for the use of the maple leaf, the story is told that on August 21, 1860, the Prince of Wales was visiting Canada (i.e. Ontario and Quebec at that time). People lined the streets of Toronto to see him - those of English origin wore a rose, the Scots wore a thistle, but what did the Canadian-born wear? Canada's emblem had long been the beaver. Some 26 years earlier the Saint Jean Baptiste Society in Quebec had adopted the maple leaf as its symbol (apparently the first time the maple leaf was used as a symbol), and it was decreed that for the prince's visit the Canadians should wear a maple leaf. (It is far easier to wear a maple leaf on one’s clothing, than to wear a beaver, dead or alive). From then on, the idea took root and the maple leaf became a symbol for Canada and Canadians.
In 1867 as Canada was becoming a country, a call was put out to write a patriotic song. Whatever song was originally chosen has since been lost to history. The second place winner, Alexander Muir, penned a song called "The Maple Leaf Forever." That song became very popular and it continued the tradition of the maple leaf as Canada’s symbol. Today, however, the song is downplayed because it is not inclusive of the French Canadians.
In World War I, Lester Pearson noted that almost every battalion from Canada included the maple leaf in its insignia, and vowed he would campaign to put it on the Canadian flag. Some 50 years later, as Prime Minister of Canada, Pearson was part of the 33-day debate that resulted in the maple leaf as the Canadian flag.
Since its incorporation into the national flag, the maple leaf has served as a symbol celebrating the nature and environment of what is now Canada. Canadians everywhere proudly wear the iconic symbol of their country.
At BH, we are fortunate to have many Canadians that are close and dear supporters of the project: Gloeing Ember, Deneby Strauss and Elron Priestman. I am honored and proud to fly their country’s flag over BH.
There is one final interesting note regarding the design of the maple leaf used for the Canadian flag. The number of points on the leaf has no significance on the flag; they do not, for instance, represent the ten provinces and one point for the territories, such as the Australian Commonwealth Star denotes. The number and arrangement of the points of the maple leaf, however, was chosen after wind tunnel tests showed the current design to be the least blurry of the various designs when tested under high wind conditions. Those ingenuous and polite Canadian, even in the design of their flag they wanted to make it easy on the eyes of the viewers!
So there you go Leo, now you know as much as I do about the origin of the Canadian flag and the use of the maple leaf.
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