SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 96

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 15, 2022 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 96 - Sep/15/22
Hon. Seamus O'Regan (Minister of Labour, Lib.)
  • Sep/15/22 1:42:31 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Speaker, there is a story that is told quite fondly back home of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. During a visit to St. John's in 1997, she was invited to tour the historic Purity Factories, which is the purveyors of such Newfoundland delicacies as Peppermint Nobs and Hard Tack. At one point, she stopped next to a worker in his white factory coat and hairnet and watched with him as the belt went by filled with Rum and Butter Kisses or some such. There was a prolonged silence, because the worker was at a complete and total loss for words with the monarch, the Queen of Canada, standing right next to him, until she politely inquired, “What is it exactly that you make here?” Before she even had a chance to finish her question, he immediately answered, “$12.75 an hour, Your Majesty.” I do not know if that story is even true, but I sure want it to be. We all did at the time. In a time before Facebook, it was the kind of story that leapt over backyard fences; it moved so fast. People laughed at it in a good-natured way because we saw ourselves in it, the awkwardness of the poor fellow being chosen to answer questions of the Queen who had unexpectedly stopped next to him of all people. Maybe it was the practical nature of Newfoundlanders who assume that when they are asked, “What is it exactly that you make here,” it refers to what it is they earn and only perhaps, upon a second question, what it is they produce. Perhaps it was because we all knew that if this Queen asked the question, “What is it exactly that you make here,” it was not because she was asking about what the person makes. It was because she was asking about the person. That is how we saw her. That is how we knew her. She had a gentle smile under a broad-brimmed hat, purse at her wrist and flowers in her hands. She walked along lines of people in parks, in malls and in factories, stopping every few steps to make polite inquiries here and there, a handshake and a laugh and then moving along unfailingly happy to be in the presence of others with never a sign of fatigue or disinterest, day after day, month after month, year after year, every year of our lives. She was a constant and it feels like there are so few constants in our lives anymore. Maybe that is why so many of us were surprised not so much by her passing after such a long and rich life, but by our reaction to it. In what seems to be such a tumultuous time with a pandemic, a war in Europe and global events taking on such careening velocity with all our technology, her constant presence calmed, soothed and inspired. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II understood her role as the head of the Commonwealth, the formality, the responsibility and the obligation, but her brilliance was in finding a way to communicate her humanity while maintaining her mystery, to resort to quiet conversation and not broadcast, and to find some corner of our lives in which to take root and to always be there unfailingly. She understood more than most how we starve for constants in our lives, even if she was only in the corner of our eye on TV as we made supper for the kids, a fleeting image on our phones as we took the bus home from work, there again in her hat, the line of people, her smile, her purse and her laugh. Some of those people were in on the joke with her. They know why she laughed and they know how she soothed. Great story aside, that fellow at Purity Factories knows exactly what she said and he will never forget it. Heads of state, presidents and prime ministers were all humbled by her presence to whom she gave searingly good advice that came from experience, that came from having as her first British prime minister to come calling, Sir Winston Churchill. No matter one's station, she was a constant, unfailing and unflinching. She was our North Star, now snuffed out. In the days ahead, we are going to notice the sky a little emptier and realize what we had all along: a steadfast guardian of our Constitution, an embodiment of the higher calling offered by public service and the face and voice we could rely on in troubling times. For now, we are burdened by the sadness of our loss, but in the days to come we will be buoyed by the example she set and the comfort she offered. On behalf of my constituents and all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, I extend our most sincere condolences to His Majesty the King of Canada, the royal family and the people of the Commonwealth and around the world who are mourning the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, perhaps the greatest servant to the people any nation has ever known.
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