Ya know, it's pretty amazing to me how much pride Maryland people have when it comes to their state (which happens to be the greatest state in the entire USA). We are so amazingly obnoxious about our crabs and our Old Bay and especially, our beautiful, unique, and one-of-a-kind flag which is the best out of all 50 states. Our flag helps us to be recognized by literally everyone, including other Marylanders from far away, and that's exactly what happens to me.

I was in Toronto on spring break and it happened to be during Maryland Day, or March 25th. So naturally, me being the true Marylander that I am, I took the flag that hangs on my college dorm wall down, packed it for spring break, and brought it all the way to Canada just so I could walk around with it on that day and take a picture with it in downtown Toronto. Is that the definition of extra? Yes, but I am ALL about it. So while my roommate made fun of me, yet still graciously tried to get this picture for me, a man who I have never met comes up to me excitedly and goes, 'Oh my gosh! Are you from Maryland, too?!" Two strangers, both from Maryland, both in downtown Toronto on the same street at the same time, happened to be brought together by the Maryland flag whose colors can be seen from miles away. We ended up talking for about ten minutes, took a couple pictures together with my flag in honor of Maryland Day, and exchanged numbers so we could each have the pictures. The entire took about 15 minutes total and yet completely made my day 100 times better. Having this happen was like getting a little slice of home all the way in Canada, and for that, I'll always be grateful for him, for my flag, and for my state in which I was born and raised. It took 15 minutes to make my day, and it was an amazing experience that I'll never forget.