One Hockey Player, One Writer, Two Heroes

When Sidney Crosby scored the gold-medal-winning for Canada’s hockey team at the 2010 Winter Olympics, he became an instant hero for Canadians. But as Principal Hardy noted at October 23’s Assembly, we should be equally enthusiastic and proud of Canadians like prolific writer Alice Munro. Munro was recently awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, only the second Canadian to win the prize.

 

“The Nobel is like the gold medal of literature,” Principal Hardy said. “It’s given for a body of work, and Alice’s is extraordinary.

 

Munro came from small-town Ontario, which makes her success on the world stage all the more remarkable. “I suspect that many of you in this room have the dream of being an NHL hockey player, but I suspect there are also some of you who have the dream of becoming a writer. Alice Munro demonstrates that with perseverance, hard work, and being open to feedback, it’s possible to achieve that dream.

 

“Munro’s stories focus on the seeming unremarkable lives of ordinary people, but she dives down past the surface and uncovers hidden depths,” Principal Hardy said. “That’s what makes her stories so captivating.”

 

Munro joins a group of remarkable writers including John Steinbeck, Toni Morrison and T.S. Eliot in winning the Nobel.

 

“When you think of Canadian heroes,” Principal Hardy said, “remember Alice Munro.”