Category: Life in Ottawa

When I left the house this morning, I knew I’d be going across downtown for a meeting. Beloved and the boys had brought home some beautiful yellow roses for me earlier in the week, and I took a minute to pluck one out of the vase on the table to bring with me to lay near the War Memorial.

As I crossed Majors Hill Park, the sun behind me shone brightly on the Parliament Buildings. The Peace Tower, with its flag at half mast for Cpl Nathan Cirillo, blazed in light against dark clouds behind it, and all I could think of was this: even after the worst storms, the sun still comes out.

Isn’t that how we are all feeling today?

I breathed deeply in the soft morning air and made my way between the Chateau Laurier and the Rideau Canal, a walk I’ve done dozens, maybe a hundred times over the years. As I came up the stairs on to Wellington Street, I could see the barricades had been pushed back even since yesterday.

In fact, I was surprised to be able to walk right up to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. There were at least a dozen uniformed police officers standing by, and probably a dozen more that I could not see. News trucks lined Elgin Street in front of the NAC and a few cameras were pointed at the War Memorial. Barricades had been pushed to the side, and city workers in orange jumpers were in the process of reverently carrying armloads of flowers, candles, notes and other tributes from their original location at the southern-most tip of the block right to the steps of the War memorial and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I was able to lay my yellow rose right on to the steps.

I took a few steps back and then settled briefly on a nearby bench to reflect, and to breathe the still morning air. And to cry, just for a minute, overwhelmed by the moment and the beauty of the autumn morning and touched by the stream of people who approached to pay their respects or genuflect or to lay their own flowers down. A stranger passed behind me and ever so gently touched my shoulder, saying nothing, then continued on his way.

It was one moment in a series of moments, like pearls on a string, that have sharpened my love of this city over the past two days, like the hashtag being used on Twitter called #MyOttawa, to celebrate what makes our city beautiful. A terrible, horrible thing has happened, and in its aftermath, we have defined ourselves through acts of beauty. From this heartbreaking article about the ordinary heroes who stepped into the path of danger to come to the aid of the fallen soldier to this video of the House of Commons paying tribute to Sergeant-At-Arms Kevin Vickers to the leaders of our political parties standing in solidarity and exchanging hugs in the House of Commons to the simple gesture of a passing stranger… this is #MyOttawa.

It was a warm September day in Ottawa, and I had just picked up a takeout lunch from the Ribfest on Sparks Street. I had a styrofoam box filled with beef ribs, beans and cole slaw, and I was looking for a spot in the sun to enjoy my lunch. I stepped out of the shadows of the big buildings around Sparks Street and into the bright sunshine beaming down onto the square around the War Memorial and found a spot on a bench to enjoy my way-too-heavy lunch.

As I ate, I happened to be watching the Honour Guard in front of the Canadian War Memorial. The different elements of the Canadian Forces take turns rotating through Honour Guard duty, standing guard over the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and this happened to be the Navy’s time of responsibility. Two seamen stood on active guard and two others were at ease nearby, interacting with the dozen or so tourists in front of the memorial. I laughed to myself as I watched one of the tourists hand her iPad to the at-ease guard and pose with her husband while the guard obligingly took a photo of them. I wondered if the couple, obviously not from Ottawa and probably not from Canada, knew they had just asked a member of our armed military to take their photo.

Charmed, I watched the Navy reservists continue to interact with the tourists. I inched a little closer so I could hear some of the interactions, and listened to the young guard field questions not only about the War Memorial and the Honour Guard, but about Ottawa, about the Rideau Canal, and about (snicker) the nearest public washroom. The young man was unerringly polite, kind and helpful as the others guards stood at rigid attention in the blazing sun.

I thought about turning my camera on them, but I didn’t. I wish I had. As I wandered back to my office that day, a piper emerged from under the keyhole cutout at the base of Elgin Street and approached the War Memorial, and I took this photo of him.

How can I reconcile that beautiful sunny afternoon with what happened today in Ottawa? How many times have I paused to admire the ceremony of Changing of the Guard at the War Memorial, as I criss-cross downtown on my way to a meeting or out for lunch or just on a meander in the sunshine? My heart absolutely aches for the family of the young reservist who was killed today. How can such a brutal, cold, horrific thing happen?

As I type this, I am at home listening to news updates on the radio. I’m typing with several browser windows open, one to updates on Twitter and another on Facebook. This is my day off work, but had I been at work today, I would have been mere meters away from the chaos at the heart of our city. My friends and office mates are in lockdown. I simply cannot wrap my head around this senseless violence at the heart of my beloved city.

Remember these photos I took, just a few days ago? This peaceful, majestic Hall of Honour in our beautiful Parliament Buildings?

This is that hallway this morning.

I’m willing to bet it’s never going to be that easy to aimlessly wander those gorgeous hallways. We’ve all lost something beautiful and innocent today.

But much as my heart aches for our city, our home, it’s the fallen soldier that I’m crying for right now. A dedicated young man who woke up to an ordinary day, and was just doing his duty – standing on guard for us.