Kandahar, Afghanistan, Friday, March 9, 2007
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I have been hoping of coming to see you for a long time.
To stand here with you today.
To see where you sleep, where you eat and where you work.
To see the fatigue on your face and the dust on your hands, but also the pride in your eyes and the strength in your step.
These are experiences and images that most Canadians will never have or see.
Thankfully, they have access to the news stories and articles filed by the journalists embedded here with you.
But I can tell youas someone visiting from homethat those glimpses, small though they may be, have been enough to make Canadians admire the courage of your commitment.
When they have doubts, it is because they are worried about you.
I know that many of them wish that they could be here today to convey their appreciation in person.
But in their absence, I canat the very leastshare their written messages.
The following note comes from the West coast.
I will read it to you:
"My thoughts are with all the men and women who are bravely keeping me from worry. Thank you all for the services you perform for our country. You are well loved and appreciated."
The author signed herself "an old lady in Vancouver."
Here is another message, this one from the Prairies, where affection is expressed with humour:
"Keep it up
Tim Hortons will be here when you come home."
Just in case you were worried!
I should point out that there were many Xs and Os at the bottom of these letters.
The next message is from central Canada:
"Thank you for helping to bring peace to people in distress. I admire you all, you are so brave
By performing simple or difficult actions, every minute of every day, you are heroes to me, and your contribution is invaluable."
And from the Atlantic provinces:
"We see what you men and women do. We are proud to call ourselves Canadians. You are strong and courageous people and we pray for your safe return."
And finally, from the North:
"As I sit and read the newspaper on the Internet and sip my coffee and listen to my children quietly munch on their morning cerealit strikes me this has been made possible because of the courage of the women and men of our Armed Forces. I cannot thank you enough for the peace and liberty you so protect by placing your lives in harm's way. From the bottom of my heart and that of my family, THANK YOU."
You know, messages like these are being written to you daily from every province and every territory.
As governor general, I have travelled across Canadafrom the mountains of British Columbia to the glaciers of Iqaluit, from Quebec City to fishing villages on the East coast.
And everywhere I travelled in that vast country of ours, the Canadians I met wanted to talk about you and they asked me how you are doing.
And I intend to tell them.
I cannot wait to tell them about the difficult, often dangerous, work that you are doing here and everything else we spoke about.
About all your work on the ground with teams made up of RCMP personnel, humanitarian workers, diplomats, civil servants and in partnership with civil society, the police, the army and Afghan authorities.
Whenever I can, I spend time with your families, who are eagerly awaiting your return and who support you wholeheartedly.
For example, I met an 11-year-old boy in Halifax who proudly showed me a beautiful drawing he made of his family, who is waiting for his father to return from Afghanistan.
I have attended a number of meetings organized by your spouses, and I was touched to hear them speak of the void left by your absence and how eager they are to have you home again.
I could see that the efforts being made by your families during your long absence contribute to your success over here.
I give them your warmest greetings.
And I promise to do so in person as soon as I get back to Canada.
Thank you for welcoming your commander in chief among you, and for letting me see a little bit of your daily reality.
I will never forget it.
