Labour Day

Tomorrow is the first day of school. Today brings back many memories when I was young.

Families are usually steeped in tradition and ours was no different. On the two weeks before Labour Day, my mother always managed to get away to a cottage somewhere. Looking after our household all year, she had earned it. It was the younger children who went with her.

We would be dropped off and then picked up a couple of weeks later on the Sunday before Labour Day. I don’t know why, but I remember it usually being very hot when we got home.

My father would also come home from his vacation on the same day. No, he didn’t vacation with us. He always brought home lots of fish. While our family could have eaten it all eventually, there was too much for our freezer. I remember scurrying around to neighbours’ homes and asking them if they wanted a fish. I had to move quickly because the fish were frozen and you could hold onto them for only so long before your hands would ache.

On Labour Day, we would go to the Canadian National Exhibition. At school we had gotten free passes and we used to watch the annual Labour Day Parade, which was a big deal then. It was a big deal for us, too. Three of my brothers were sheet metal workers and they often were in the parade.

Another highlight was the arrival of the 48th Highlanders pipe band. On several occasions my Uncle Stan led them. Apparently he was well known in military circles, although I hardly knew him.

Being on a strict budget, we had two rides, I think, we could choose from. My favourite was called The Scrambler. The rest of the time was spent wandering around all the buildings.

We didn’t need money to enjoy the Ex. Taking in all of the sights, sounds and smells were delightful.

After a day of walking around in the hot sun, we would return home on a very crowded streetcar, then take the subway, then the bus and arrive home. We couldn’t get to bed fast enough. Rather than being nervous about the next day, we slept soundly.

We awoke to a new beginning, wearing new clothes we had purchased in the Eaton’s Annex, an area of the old Eaton’s store where there were bargains.

While we can’t go back, it’s nice that the memories still remain.