I am Canadian.

It feels nice to be able to say that and today marks my very first Canada day as a Canadian citizen.

So much has happened in the last 11 years since I first set foot on Canadian soil, I’ve backpacked, lived in hostels, met and travelled with amazing people from all over the world. I have worked at some interesting and crazy jobs far out of the field of expertise with which I arrived.

I’ve been on crazy adventures that make me shake my head and smile as my mind says, “I did that”.

Some of the greatest highs of my life have been here in Canada. Some of the deepest lows too.

Canada is the place where I opened my heart and lived – really lived – courageously, outrageously, and, yes, sometimes selfishly, out loud.

I’ve fallen in love, had my heart broken, and fallen in love… all for the first time in my life.

I began writing about my journey, first as a traveller, then as a person joyfully living life in a place that finally felt like home, then as a child of an “off-the-wall” mother, and now as a pre-adoptive parent.

Canada brought out my playful side and connected me with my inner-wisdom.

I’ve matured in Canada.

I have found my balance, found my feet, found my voice, found my heart, and the place where I am starting to feel as though I’m finding my calling too.

Canada has soothed me, rocked me, encouraged me, embraced me, and loved me.

She may not always be perfect, but she is home to me.

No matter where the future takes me, what the future holds for me, or how it unfolds, Canada will live in my heart and be my True North…for life.

Thank you to all of those people along the way – friends, transient travellers, fellow expats, and Canadians alike – who have made this journey so special to me. No matter how fleeting or permanent our relationship, every single one of you contributed to the person I am today, and the person I continue to become.

I love you. All of you for helping me uncover the me that I love to be.

Thank you Canada, your nurturing spirit, your energy, your incredible beauty that reverberates in every living thing, is so extraordinary and I feel honoured and grateful to be able to call you home.  Thank you, most of all, for guiding me to me.

This is a special Canada Day for me, the first of many as a proud Canadian citizen.

The True North Strong and Free…

Happy Canada Day!

Warm smiles and Love,

Ali Jayne – Canadian.  🙂