The other day, Jason mentioned I should watch the documentary about the Tragically Hip. He said it was excellent; it made you proud to be Canadian, and it made you super grateful for having grown up at the same time as the Hip. He was correct on all accounts. It’s an emotional series that left me weeping. And thinking.
I am often very pensive while in Provence. I think it’s the space, the nature, and the hours upon hours of cycling in the quiet. It gives me time to reflect, which often causes a little melancholy.
The documentary was a stroll down memory lane and gave me plenty to contemplate. Having grown up in Ontario and not being far behind in age, the story of their experience felt like going home. I’ll admit when the Hip was coming about, I was still following the Grateful Dead around, so I wasn’t super aware of them in the early years. But it reminded me of how important music was to Gen Xers, and, especially around Toronto, how easy access to live music was. It was plentiful and cheap. Seeing live music, whether it was Tom Waits at the old Massey Hall, Jane Siberry or Bruce Cockburn for four bucks at Ontario Place, the Rheostatics in some basement bar off Ossington, or just some local band at the Horseshoe or Lee’s Palace, these were weekly events. Buying records at Sam the Record Man or some second-hand shop was what you did after school on your way home. Music was such an enormous part of our collective experience. We didn’t have internet, and we didn’t have cell phones. The only way to reach your parents while out was on the pay phone, and only if they happened to be home to pick up the call.
I realize now how lucky we were to have such freedom. To have been out with friends, playing pool, listening to music, rather than being online, was an absolute gift. The Hip’s story is one that many Canadians can relate to, as is their music. They spoke for a generation, and they gave a voice to Canada. Gord Downie was a poet; his lyrics were beautiful and powerful. He wasn’t wrong when he sang, “… no dress rehearsal, this is our life…”
So, with his words in mind, I try to appreciate every tragic, beautiful, magical, heartbreaking moment I can squeeze out of this life. Spending as much time as possible with people I love, and being in places on this planet that bring my soul joy, makes this endeavour so much easier. This is indeed our life.
