The Little Things That Make Me Canadian

I had a great conversation with someone last night who spent 6 years in Canada going to school and was really able to identify with some of those Canadian quirks/stereotypes that we have. Couple this with a chat about the same topic with another friend the other night, I have to say there are some things I really miss right now!

• People holding doors open in front of you. I can't count the number of times I expected someone to look behind and see me right there and hold the door for just a second longer. The worst ones are the ones that open the door just a bit, then slip in, essentially closing the door on you. 
• Getting a thank you for holding doors open for others
• Smiling at people in the hall/elevator/street and getting one in return. I mostly get strange looks back. Or, none at all. 
• "Sorry!" 
• The excitement of the first dusting of snow on the mountains 
• Toques and scarves
• The signs in the bathrooms telling people how to avoid Influenza (sorry, but the handwashing here I've observed is pitiful or non-existent. Gross, I know. The country looks mightly clean on the surface, but some personal habits need some work on!)
• Fall apples
• My bike and golf clubs
• Awesome hugs 

I really couldn't have had a more Canadian convo last night - we talked about mountains, Montreal smoked meat, poutine, Banff, snow, politeness (we are almost too polite to a fault!), and Russell Peters. The last one came about because he's of Indian descent. Myself, being Chinese, was thinking about instances where you'll find the two races interact with each other (my context was Vancouver). We concluded it would be close to 'nil, maybe except at a Russell Peters show.

I've also observed people here are very risk-adverse. I thought I was, but they are even more so! It could be because from the time they grow up, rules define their world. You can't do this, you can't do that. You can do this, but this is the exact way you must do it. Even directions to the Ministry of Manpower (I hate that gender discriminating name!) on their website have photos documenting every turn you need to take to reach their office. Getting lost, is not an option - because they don't let you, and people don't want to. Then again, I guess you can consider it amazing customer service?

Anyhow, going for a wander at Pulau Ubin this Saturday. Stay tuned for more!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Just a short one tonight. It's my 2nd Thanksgiving in a row away from home and it's put me in a very reminiscent mood. I cooked some chicken tonight after locating a can of cranberry sauce (which isn't too hard to find here, yay!) and a can pumpkin pie mix. As I admired my Thanksgiving creation, I couldn't help but think of the warmth of a family Thanksgiving dinner and all the smells associated with assortment of food our family has when we all get together.

I thought I had blogged about my last Thanksgiving and if I did, the post escapes me. I think I did something very similar - managed to locate a can of cranberry sauce in Colombo and cooked some chicken. :)  Here's to hoping that I can do the same for Christmas in Hong Kong this year (yes, I'm spending Christmas in Hong Kong!).

Tonight, I also sat at my computer browsing through the Facebook posts from a year ago. It's hard to believe that a year ago I had just returned to Colombo after a month abroad visiting India with a friend, wandering London, conquering Ireland, attending and working at the Isle of Man Commonwealth Youth Games, and learning at midterm in Cayman. Now I sit in Singapore, knowing that I have a plan that only goes as far as the beginning of January 2013.

Conquering Ireland! Not really, just being a dork in The Burren,  Ireland.

I'm a person who plans a lot - if you saw the spreadsheet that I had on my trip in 2007, and also last month for Hawaii, you might think I'm a little too detail-oriented. This past week in learning from two of the most amazing people I know, I really recognized that I could be a bit more spontaneous. I'm starting to think I've started this journey to do exactly that and for once in my life, not have every little step planned out. It's a little scary, but I'm going to enjoy the ride.

Speaking of this past week, I was humbled by how hard it is to facilitate rather than teach. I've been able to stand up in front of people and tell them what to do and present information, but I have never experienced what I did this week which was facilitating a participatory training session. It is incredible, that when you are specific with your instructions, the information and knowledge you can draw out of a group of people without telling them exactly what you are looking for can be so powerful. And, to be able to help them synthesize all their thoughts was such an incredible feeling. It was really hard though, and well outside my comfort zone. I'm looking forward to start exploring more about facilitation and getting opportunities to practice these techniques.

So maybe this post wasn't so short after all. =P Happy Turkey Day, Canada. I am thankful that I can do what I love and it's given me the opportunity to travel, live, and learn around the world. 

Chapter Closed

As I write this en-route to Toronto, leaving debrief and Ottawa behind, I'm in an especially reflective mood. I'm sad that this experience as a Capacity Support Officer is over. I am excited for what is to come and to see where my Capacity Support Program Team 3 colleagues will go. The group we were a year ago and the group that got together this weekend was completely different. We all learned that we are extremely capable in taking on anything that was thrown at us and making opportunities out of everything. We have all grown so much. So proud of everyone involved and so happy to have had all of you influence the change in me this past year.

So what did we all accomplish? I will list some of the legacies we have left behind in our host countries:

• Weekly women's fitness classes where they did not exist before
• Recreational basketball leagues across a host country
• New social media strategies to increase engagement with Commonwealth Games Associations and National Olympic Committees
• New national sport events/competitions ranging from triathlons to youth multi-sport games
• Proposals for funding, facilities development, team development, and long-term athlete development
• Educational programs promoting Olympism and Olympic Values, anti-doping, and fair play
• Sport programs
• Games team management processes
• Staff and volunteers trained in games team management software (Zeus)
• Newly developed or strengthened national sport councils and relationships between national sport bodies and CGAs/NOCs

And this is just the start ... 

I think I can safely say that a lot of us "found" parts of us that we didn't know existed. We definitely had our limits pushed and we all made the best of our situations. My biggest take away - learning how to communicate more effectively both with people in my host country and people back home. I've strengthened some important relationships and have become better at making new ones. 

Thank you Commonwealth Games Canada staff and volunteers for the amazing support you have offered to us to help us grow tremendously over the last year. That support also allowed us to achieve outcomes that I think none of us could have expected given the opportunities that we found and also were presented to us. 

Now I look forward to staying connected with this amazing group of change makers and connecting with others as well. Need a job done in community development, volunteer coordination, event planning, program management, fundraising, or strategizing, especially in the sport sector? I for sure will know someone, or a team, who can help you. ;)