Labour Day 2019 Poem by Gayathri Seetharam

Labour Day 2019
-Gayathri B. Seetharam
At last, I watched Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell
On our long flight from Frankfurt to Toronto
The truth of the matter is that this movie and I were jinxed
For I used to fall asleep every time I stayed up late to watch it on TBS;

It has a brilliant storyline and it reminded me of the NFL folklore
And the time we had seen a groundhog feeding on the grass in Deerhurst Resort in Muskoka
I decided that I had to tell PM Justin Trudeau to declare the taking stock of the work done
During the spring and summer by the beaver as a sign that Canadians are going to be productive
In the fall and winter months;

I imagine that this is going to be a nice route to my observation
From today's issue of The Globe and Mail (Sept 7th,2019)
For a John Ibbitson has critiqued two books on PM Justin Trudeau,
One for Trudeau critics and the other for Trudeau supporters;

Since I am Trudeau supporter, I shall dwell momentarily
On the story of John Ivison's book, Trudeau: The education of a Prime Minister
And what struck me as significant is the excerpt from Thomas Sowell's 1995 book
And using this, Ivison has described a liberal world view that divides the population into people like them -
Progressive, enlightened, tolerant and committed to using government to advance social and environmental goals
So far so good and I glowed with the pleasure of a compliment for I have purchased a mug and a scarf
And even donated a reasonable sum for me, to the Liberal Party;

I realized that the man had softened the blow which he was to deal later
For liberals are also benighted outsiders who are too thick even to comprehend their own ignorance
He has also not minced words when he both compliments and criticises Justin Trudeau
And of his three points on Trudeau for he says that older men dismiss the PM as both a fop and a phony
Someone who got to where he is because of his name and not his achievements
I shall try to defend Trudeau and his party for Ivison accuses the Trudeau government
As a triumph of symbolism over action
By saying the cliché that actions speak louder than words;

The third point of Ivison the essay reports is that Trudeau believes that Canadians are as progressive as he is
And this implies, I say, that Trudeau is an optimist who views the world with tinted glasses
Which is not a bad thing after all if he has two feet firmly planted on the ground
The true sign of Labour Day 2019 by the beaver is a bridge which has been built in the spring and the summer
To welcome the autumn and the winter months
And a lot of Ivison's criticism is water under that bridge
For PM Justin Trudeau has weathered a few storms in his time as PM of Canada.