Normally, I write about topics related to education, as I am a primary school teacher. But I am tired and need to disconnect from the academic world. I am on vacation away from my students and I do a lot of cycling, in order to stay fit, which leads me to experience things that normally, stuck in my routine, I would not be able to experience.
This free time allows me to question myself on new subjects that, although they are very important, do not give me enough time to reflect on them to have a clear vision on a daily basis. As my last name — Bucci-Wheaton — suggests, I am the grandson of an immigrant. On the other hand, I feel as much of a native Quebecer as a Tremblay.
My ancestors (no, not the band) did not teach me their mother tongue, and I am saddened by that today. Manage nonno, my perch? “I understand, however, that when leaving Mussolini’s fascism, my ancestors must have felt a certain shame in singing loudly the Brothers of Italy arriving in Montreal in the 1920s.
My ” no no » said: “Why should we be proud of what we fled?” These words are his, it is up to you to judge their relevance. One thing is certain, a hundred years later, I would probably vote Yes to a referendum question that was in favour of the separation of Quebec. That is what would give the lie to Mr. Parizeau and his “ethnic votes”.
But I digress: I was telling you about my last bike ride… I was just riding when I saw people playing cricket. Players from South Asia had gathered to play this very popular sport in that part of the world. They were playing inside a baseball field. I found the idea really interesting. It doesn’t rain cricket fields in Quebec.
Taking a sport that comes from elsewhere and adapting it to the field of a sport that was once deeply rooted in the genes of Quebecers, that’s a great example of multiculturalism! I sat down, watched these people play and tried to understand the rules. This game ultimately resembles baseball. After several minutes of observation, they invited me to play and I accepted without hesitation.
I didn’t start on the bench, oh no! Straight to the bat! In my first presence on this mixed field, I ” swigné in the butter” on the first pitch. They found this new expression very funny and, as the game went on, I even caught a teammate uttering a church blasphemy when he dropped the ball in the field. I wonder who he learned this sweet language from…
At the end of the game, I was invited to eat at the opposing pitcher’s house and was given the best butter chicken I’ve ever had. No one understood the connection between my butter chicken joke and what I said when I threw my first pitch as designated hitter. That’s for another time…
I set off again on my bike, my heart and belly full. Quietly of course, to facilitate both digestion and reflection. I was amazed by this exchange carried out on the basis of true mutual respect. My new ” dosata ” hadn’t tried to change the “ball field” to a cricket field, I hadn’t tried to change the rules of the game because it was played on a baseball field. Everyone had gone their separate ways.
Dring! That’s when the alarm rang, and I woke up! It was so simple. As my ancestors (yes, the band this time) used to say: “Oh! Things are going badly, things are going badly! Talk about a rude awakening.”
It is less immigration that is being pointed out than respect (or rather disrespect) for the host country that fans the embers of hatred. In the imposition, above all — and on both sides — of dogmas that blind reason and make us forget that inside, we all have the same color.
Pierre Falardeau said: “I, the world, I don’t want to know where they come from, I want to know where they are going. The world, they can be white, yellow, black, purple, blue with yellow-orange peaks: I don’t give a damn. If they want to fight with me, they are my brothers.”
When the left hand distances itself from the right hand, extremes are created. Both move away from the heart, which is often where reason and common sense are found. In these uncertain times, let us unite on what unites us and not on what divides us. Let us unite against the stupidity that always insists. Whether it is on the left, on the right, in the center, and everywhere on the planet, regardless of skin color.
Everything is based on knowledge of others: it is this that allows us to chase away the fear of the unknown. The transmission of culture, language and values are essential keys to this. And to reduce the effects of ignorance, let us restore the importance of… school.
Damn! I thought I was dropping out. The primacy of school, you have to believe that we always come back to it!