A piece in the Guardian made light of Yukon signs that advise residents to social distance by keeping one caribou apart or, in the absence of caribou, four ravens. Ah, those crazy Canucks! If you read to the end of the article, you’ll note some standard Toronto measures, too. Keep one hockey stick apart or, if you’ve misplaced your hockey stick, then keep three Canada geese apart.
On Sunday, I walked down Bay Street, through the heart of downtown Toronto, and I saw a strange sight: an empty parking lot. It was the parking lot on the north side of the bus terminal on the corner of Bay and Edward. I’ve lived all my life in Toronto and never have I seen a downtown parking lot that wasn’t crammed with cars. Yet here it was. A miracle!
Rain during the night had left behind big puddles and a solitary Canada goose was taking advantage of the situation to drink and groom itself. It was oblivious to my presence and allowed me to creep closer and closer until it filled my frame. One thing that was obvious is that the three goose rule is excessive if measured from beak to tail feather. Stretched out, two geese make one hockey stick.
Throughout the world, people have noted how the absence of human activity has emboldened animals. In Toronto, you won’t find monkeys riding scooters and snatching children, but a Canada goose in the middle of a concrete wilderness is still noteworthy.
