2010 Winter Olympic Games Won't be Forgotten...

To say that our kick at the Olympic can started off on the wrong foot would be an understatement.


There was the very tragic death of the Georgian Luge athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili which made a very fast sliding track already more suspect.

There was the lack of snow, the rain, the warm weather which proves to be a problem in every Olympics, but it seems that nature picks this year, and this 2 week period to send down a record high of temperatures that hasn't been seen in 100 years.

And this was just the beginning of the games before they had started...

Then you add the 2600 athletes, and their support cast, and throw in celebrities and media and now you are getting a taste of international ego that happens only at the Olympics when every nation is trying to flex their muscles.

As always, there were the stories of the great Human Spirit, the triumphs, and the letdowns that only Olympic pressure can bring. Canada had its share of these, with Alex Bilodeau, and Joannie Rochette taking the pressure in stride and focusing to win Medals in the face of it all.

But mostly, I was just resigned to be happy at the chance to watch my countrymen and women participate in our home Olympics and watch us unite together for 16 Days of Glory. No mention of politics, ethnic background, sexual orientation, or any other reason to divide a nation; it was all about the games and the healthy competition of how we as humans compete.

But more importantly, I think the world got a healthy dose of who we are as a nation. I think we were able to demonstrate how Canadians live, and who we really are. The opening and closing ceremonies did a good job of showing the world our beauty as a nation, and who we are that make up Canada, in its many diverse looks.

So, you'll have to forgive me for feeling a little sad that the party is over. However, that feeling is overpowered with a sense of elation that we had more gold medals in any Winter Olympics than any other nation in history. A sense of national pride comes over me, and I feel a great sense of hope. I don't know why I feel that way, I just know that I do. These Olympics won't make me healthier, make me more money, or change my life in a profound way that things like family, work or money will do to change you.

But in turn, it does something that all those aforementioned things do that could never be duplicated. It gives everyone around me, who is feeling the same way after seeing how our country came together for 16 Days of Glory, a sense of pride. If you weren't vindicated before these Games started about how great our country is, you feel that pride now. And no amount of money could ever buy that…

Now, we all go back to our regular routines, and go about our ways. But I will keep this momentum inside me a little while longer. It's just too good to let go of just yet. Thanks go out to all of those countless people who made this happen, known and unknown. To the athletes who came to compete and to the media who covered it and let us watch it from the comfort of our homes to cheer and forget everything else in our lives to have this moment of pride. But most of all, thanks have to go out to our country, that we all love and adore.

Well done Canada!!