I alluded to my excitement in a previous post, but today was the big day when the Legislative Assembly officially recieived it’s Black Rod. The new Usher of the Black Rod knocked three times on the door of the House, and the Black Rod entered the chamber for the first time. This actually answered one of the questions I had had about the House doors (because I am the kind of person who has questions about the House doors), namely, what are the small wooden squares that are placed around shoulder height above the handles?
It turns out that these are knocking spots. The Usher of the Black Rod slams the door with considerable force, enough that a metal lock inside the chamber actually fell off the door, and if this force were applied to the chamber doors on a regular basis, I would expect their deterioration to be significant. Instead, when the wooden knocking spots are worn out, they can be swapped out for new knocking spots. You can check out the video of the knocking here.
I think the creation of the Black Rod of BC is a wonderful way to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen. The existence of the black rod symbolizes the responsibility that the Crown has to the Legislature, and by extension, the people. It is with the Black Rod that the sovereign’s representative is announced for the Throne Speech, and Royal Assent.
The Black Rod of BC has a uniquely Cascadian flavour. The provincial stone of BC has been incorporated into the rod – a small jade carving by a relation of the Lieutenant Governor sits with three rings and a gold coin of the sovereign. The rings, engraved with the mottos of Canada and British Columbia, when placed with the carving and the coin, represent the bond that ties the sovereign of our province with our citizenry. Now they are together on the Black Rod.
The assembly of the Black Rod was appropriate as well. Our history as a colony and our growth into a mature self-governing province with an improving relationship with the First Nations was mirrored by the affixing of rings in the British House of Lords, the Canadian Senate, and in our very own Legislative Assembly.
It is not to be only a traditional icon, but looks to the future. Within the rod is a time capsule of messages not to be seen again for sixty years. Hopefully, when these messages are again seen, we will be able to look back on what is to be, for us now, the next sixty years, with a sense that the promise symbolized by the Black Rod of British Columbia has been realized.
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“it’s” = contraction of “it is”
what you meant to use was “its” posessive case.