Instead, my heart is heavy, as has been the case for most Canadians.
This has been a week that none of us could have anticipated, and a collective mourning and sadness has been felt.
So this week is about the grief in Canada, after a bloody assault on all of us.
A Peaceful Nation Weeps
The terrorism started by a man in a vehicle deliberately running down two soldiers in uniform at an army base. One died, the other lived. The killer emerged from his vehicle with a large knife. Things are not clear after that point but he was shot and killed by police.
Not long after that, hotly pursued by police and security he ran down a long hallway, and engaged in a shootout. There were hundreds of MP's on site, also our Prime Minister. Fortunately they were either to the left or right of him, and he went straight, leading towards the library.
The sergeant-at-arms, a former Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, retrieved his hand held gun from his nearby office, confronted and killed the shooter. All this took place in less than two minutes.
Now new security measures will have to be situated in many of our treasured peaceful places. No more walking casually into our Parliament buildings. Our MP's are working with security to determine how our blatant democracy and openness can survive with the restrictions.
No doubt many changes will occur.
So my heart is heavy this Friday. This is the time to really take stock of your blessings and gratitude opportunities.
I'm going to borrow a line from my dear friend femmeflashpoint of flashPress. It was she who urged me write about my feelings on this week. The line goes like this:
"Please thank a veteran at your earliest opportunity." They are our heroes.
Amen.