Having returned from a fantastic weekend in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, I cannot help but think that our good neighbors to the north have the right formula. While we in the U.S. seem to negatively focus on the differences among us Americans, Canadians accept and embrace those differences.
Evidence of this was abundant this past weekend at the Heritage Festival in Edmonton. This event featured food, music and dance from no less than 70 different ethnicities that comprise the Edmonton population.
The food - where does one start? In the course of the day we ate jerked chicken (Jamaica), egg rolls (Singapore), lemon bitters (Australia), lefse hot dogs (Scandinavia), elephant ears (Romania), watermelon (Iran), potato on a stick (Lebanon), pretzels (Germany), and on and on.
Equally wonderful were the music, native dances and colorful clothing worn by the many different Edmonton citizens.
It was a wonderful weekend to observe what can and should be done to create inclusiveness within a highly diverse population. What a festival!
In many ways this wonderful Heritage Days festival defines what it is to be Canadian.
Let's not let ourselves be defined by Charlottesville.
Readers, enjoy your day.
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