A bright spot has arrived in what seems to be an unrelenting winter and I'm not talking about the delicious-smelling pot of groundhog stew bubbling away on the stove.
Georgian bay is mostly frozen over, which means any new snow has to come from the south.
We now know there are fewer days of winter ahead of us than behind us.
The sun is still out at six pm.
We're feeling hope.
And now, in tropical Sochi, Russia, Canada's winter athletes are skating, skiing and sliding their little hearts out while we here at home are amazed at their grace and fortitude.
A poll released recently said most Canadians consider the games a success for Canada only if our millionaire hockey players get another gold to add to their basement honour walls.
I think they've already been won, on the tracks: the cross-country ski track, where a Russian racer broke his ski and the Canadian coach came running with the replacement; the long track where a Canadian skating racer felt his teammate had a better shot at a good result and handed over his place at the games which had been earned, fair and square.
Those are the stories that will stick with me. I don't care if Sidney Crosby nets the overtime winner against the US - been there, done that.
It's the humanity in the face of adversity that makes me happy, and you can call me as sappy as the saccharine, tear-jerking commercials all you want.
Write On! The Games are to my mind SUPPOSED to be about healthy competition, our best versus your best. NOT about contract-citizenship-of-convenience to which far too many subscribe to, or medal counts, or even winning. Simply getting to the games is Championship by any measure.
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