It’s funny what exile does to a person. It removes one from the seemingly intransient ground that for decades had been home and drops the subject between worlds: unable to become fully part of one’s adoptive land, and yet somehow alienated from one’s home. Still, with this alienation comes a richer understanding of what home is. It’s like taking a step back to assess one’s work of art, to look at it from a different perspective.
In the nearly ten years that I have lived abroad, my experiences as an expatriate have helped me better appreciate what it means to be a Canadian. Not only has this allowed me to see how my native country is perceived abroad, it has also led me to better appreciate the idiosyncrasies that make Canada unique and precious. As a journalist whose work has largely focused on the travails of a young democracy living under the shadow of an authoritarian giant, I have also become more sensitive to the challenges that we face in ensuring the quality of our democracy.
My article, published today in The National Interest, continues here.
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