50 YEARS OLD- OUR CANADIAN FLAG

Iconic- hard to believe the debate and controversy to have our own flag. Each province had a flag but Canada used the Red Ensign- British as a reminder of being part of the British Commonwealth. But on February 15, 1965 the new flag was declared the one. Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson was in office at the time.

Little flags and big ones are waved at important Canadian events. Even the athletes at the closing ceremony of many Olympics carry a huge one around the field. I remember the prototypes- even some stamps had those images. A stamp from 1964 had 3 red maple leaves with a blue background- National Unity. Actually trying to please part of the country and not the whole. An old song rarely sung at events now- The Maple Leaf Forever. More English than French which was the problem. However with the Maple Syrup industry in Canada having an incredible base in Quebec, the maple leaf definitely is symbolic. When we celebrated the 100th anniversary of confederation in 1967, a beautiful 5 cent stamp had the flag proudly waving. Our flag is very hard to make by hand. The maple leaf with all its points would take a steady hand. My home flies the flag on July 1 weekend. It is handy for major sports events. Red and white are good colours. It stands out and most Canadians would not have it any other way. Eh?