We have just celebrated Canada Day and Fete Nationale du Quebec and National Indigenous Peoples Day.

Great fun. Tons of flags flying, kids running all over, Canadian musicians performing, fireworks lighting up the darkened skies.

Good for us. We sometimes don't celebrate our country sufficiently. There are a lot of very good things here, from our local and national cuisines to craft beers to being oh-so-close in Game 7 in Florida.

Who can resist poutine? Butter tarts? Saskatoon berry pie? Cedar-planked salmon? A savory tourtiere? A Jiggs' Dinner with Figgy Duff? A buffalo burger?

I used to love attending July 1 celebrations. As a council member I was always asked to help serve the giant cakes that would be given out. The cakes were big square white cakes with a lot of sticky white and red icing, featuring the maple leaf in the centre. Kids would line up and we would put a big piece of the cake on a little plate or paper towel, and off the kids would go to smear their faces with the icing and get sugar-shocked. I'm sure their parents loved us.

For those of us serving, it was impossible to avoid getting the icing all over. Especially under your fingernails. It would take three days to get rid of the sticky-sweet icing. After a few years, some genius in the Rec department finally came up with the idea of getting medical gloves for the elected officials to wear. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

In every community, there were celebrations. One of the more touching was the installation of new Canadians, as they took their citizenship oath and became proud new Canadians. Welcome.

We tend to come together for such events. Parades and parties. Barbeques and baby contests. Fun and festivals.

National holidays are an important time to reflect on our nation and how we can impact its future. There is no doubt that Canada is going through a time of change. We need good people to step forward.

I hope you and your family and friends enjoyed one or two or three of our most recent national celebrations. It is a time to feel warm about our country, and to celebrate the best of being a citizen of Canada.