I have a connection to Nova Scotia that is a bit different than most people. My mother was born and raised here but I only visited her childhood home when I was about 6 years old. My mother and almost all of her brothers and sisters moved to Ontario way back in the sixties and my mother didn't return to Nova Scotia very often. I always knew about our roots in Cape Breton (Whitney Peir) and I could actually remember a few things about my visit.

What has had the most impact on my upbringing is the everyday influence of our Nova Scotia background. I had always felt a little separated as I became an adult in Ontario. I knew something didn't feel right. I didn't feel connected. I didn't know why but I surely had some obvious examples that made me feel the way I did.

My big ah ha moment was when I met Kim in Ontario. Kim is from here and I was immediately attracted to her friendly spirit. I couldn't believe I had spent all my adult years feeling like people were so individual and there was no sense of community. I felt like I was missing something but I didn't know what.

My life changed dramatically when Kim and I came for our first visit to Nova Scotia together. I remember being in Tim Horton's the second day of our visit and people already knowing me. I was in shock, I quickly started to understand why I felt so disconnected in Ontario. It was the curse of Nova Scotia. My family had brought their friendly upbringing with them with when they moved to Ontario. Our family spent almost all the holidays together in Ontario when I was growing up and I had been influenced by that friendly curse. I know understood why I even felt like I was supposed to be connected in the first place. I didn't want to be annonomous in Ontario like everyone else. I wanted to be a part of a whole.

I wanted to walk down the street with a smile, my head up and to say hello to someone passing by. It sounds strange saying that after living here for four years now but it was true. If you smiled while walking and actually said hello in Ontario, you were very strange. I remember standing in line as a kid and my mother making conversations with complete strangers when growing up. I could never imagine me being able to do that when I lived there. Now, I can't wait to go back and be really strange. I am the curse now. And I love it.

Thanks Nova Scotia. I know I am home when I am here.