My husband and I buy lottery tickets every now and then and have fun dreaming about what we would do with the money if we won millions. But the truth is that as Canadians born and bred, we know that we have already won the lottery.

Canada was ranked the second best country in the world again this year, edged out only by Switzerland in the annual Best Countries survey from the U.S. News & World Report. But Canada topped the list in the “Quality of Life” category, scoring a perfect 10 based on a variety of sub-factors including politics, economy and health care.

Are we perfect? Of course not. We still have much work to do dealing with many critical issues. But we welcome people from all over the world with open arms. Thanks to former Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas, we also have a single payer healthcare system (wait times notwithstanding), that is the envy of many of our neighbours to the south.

So whether you travel across the country or around the block, make this your year to see and celebrate a part of this great country where you have never been before. And to get you in the mood, here’s a little travelling music with wonderful images celebrating the beautiful place we are privileged to call home.

“Something to Sing About” by Oscar Brand performed by The Travelers.

Happy 150^th Birthday, Canada!

Written by Sheryl Smolkin
	Sheryl Smolkin LLB., LLM is a retired pension lawyer and President of Sheryl Smolkin & Associates Ltd. For over a decade, she has enjoyed a successful encore career as a freelance writer specializing in retirement, employee benefits and workplace issues. Sheryl and her husband Joel are empty-nesters, residing in Toronto with their cockapoo Rufus.