Mom

Evelyn Robertson

September 18, 1931 – December 28, 2011

Evelyn Robertson Eulogy

This is the hardest thing I have ever had to write. How do you wrap words around such a remarkable person? How do you honour someone with words when you are overwhelmed with how much they meant to you?

Mom, you have been a very special person to many people. You have touched many lives. I want to take this opportunity to recall some of your journey. This is a journey that explored the High C’s. Not seas as in oceans. The High C’s refer to many values you lived by that demonstrated your high moral code. The High C’s of your journey showed Courage, Compassion, Conviction, Community, Charity, Creativity, and Comical Adventures. I would like to take a few moments to explore each of these.

Courage

Those that knew Mom knew that she was not afraid of life. She embraced all that life had to offer, including hardship. She brought dignity to any challenge that faced her and always dealt with these challenges head on. I have drawn a tremendous amount of inspiration by observing how Mom looked an obstacle in the eye and in her own way, said “bring it on”. Her spirit was not daunted by any of these instances, she would merely decide on a course of action, and do it. I remember moving to Halifax. She had very little to her name and was faced with entering the work force right away to make ends meet. Completely unfamiliar with the city, or what would be required, she reviewed classifieds, zoned in on a job, and started that leg of her journey without hesitation or fear.

Another fine example of her courageous nature had her riding in a trailer being pulled by a lawn tractor. Blake was driving the tractor and had an encounter with bees. He jumped from the tractor to escape the bees and mom found herself on a moving, driverless tractor & trailer. In true action movie style, she crawled from the trailer over the hitch and climbed into the seat of the tractor and safely stopped the vehicle. Danger averted; the brave save the day. This was typical of her approach to situations. It is a theme that prevailed throughout her life, including her fight with illness and cancer these past couple of years. She did not feel sorry for herself and would not accept any pity from others. Along with her courage, no matter what came her way, she would always count her blessings for which she was deeply grateful.

Compassion

Mom was a care-giver. She was forever concerned with doing for others. Her own needs were always secondary to those around her. She would make sure everyone was well fed and tended to before considering herself. She made the world a better place with her volunteerism and deep regard for everyone she met. There are many wayward pets that have found their way to Mom’s door. They were brought in from the cold, given food, shelter and love. She was proud of her work with the Women’s Institute along with the Food Bank. Growing up, mom created a haven for many gatherings and events and would always make sure we were well cared for. Mom’s compassion knew no bounds or limitations. She held no grudges or resentment to anyone who may have wronged her. Her ability to overlook misdeeds and focus on love and forgiveness is a trait I greatly admire.

Conviction

Mom was a woman that created her own opportunities. She did not sit idle waiting for life to hand her a roadmap, she forged her own path. There were many sources of discouragement through the years, however, she refused to believe in those words and instead chose to believe in herself. Mom worked hard to get her grade XII GED and her driver’s license. Those were symbols of her ability to achieve her goals and dreams. She was proud of those accomplishments, but she was particularly pleased that she received her Interprovincial Chef’s papers, a goal she worked very hard to achieve. There are few that could rival her wizardry in the kitchen or in the garden. She tackled her pursuits with dedication and love and accomplished wonderful things in the process. To further illustrate the deep reserve of conviction, a few years ago on a trip to PEI with Charlie, Karen, Justin, & Garrett, mom twisted her ankle. She did not wish to impose, so she remained silent about her pain and opted to take an Advil. Upon returning home, she decided to go to the Doctor to get it checked out only to find out she had broken her ankle. She was small, but mighty, treating many of life’s adversities or pain as a minor annoyance that she would not let impede her task at hand.

Community

Mom had a very strong sense of community. It was not enough for her to care for her friends and family, she felt a compelling need to give her time and energy to the community. She spoke fondly of the events and functions she was involved with while she lived in East Gore, Nova Scotia. I know she felt a great sense of satisfaction from efforts. Not only did she embrace her community, but she was well embraced by it. The lives she touched, touched her back.

Charity

Giving was part of Mom’s nature. She always felt blessed to be able to share with others. The food bank was very important to mom. She wanted to feed the world. In the last few months, she was very proud to contribute to rescue missions in both Regina and Lethbridge. Over the years, there were numerous other organizations and events mom would donate to. Mom’s legacy of giving has inspired many. Her values and generosity live on in the people she inspired.

Creativity

Mom was an absolute artist in the kitchen. Her exploits are legendary. She could look in the fridge, see a handful of leftovers, and turn them into a meal fit for royalty. We were constantly amazed how a left over baked potato, piece of steak and single cob of corn could turn into a four course meal to feed eight people. This creativity extended to her gardening as well. Her yard in east Gore, was often referred to as the “Garden of Eve”. She knew how to nurture and grow plants of a variety of styles and blended them all together in a wonderful, peaceful landscape.

Comical Adventures

Where to start? Mom was always up for new experiences and adventures. She loved to laugh. Many times when telling a story, she had to stop and regain her composure; her eyes streaming with tears of joy. Her laughter was pure and her joy was infectious. She continued to enjoy life and explore new opportunities right up to the end. Her zest for life, made her one of the youngest people I knew. When Phil, Roberta, and kids would travel east, mom would join them on various travels around the Maritimes. This included digging clams on a beach or riding on a large gunny-sack slide with her dress blown up above her head. In recent years she participated in the Lethbridge YMCA 5k fun run with Charlie, Karen and the boys. On a family trip to Waterton Park a few years ago, she insisted on hiking the steep Bear’s hump with the rest of the family.

She played many different board games and card games with our group of friends. In Regina, Mom was a favourite in our Texas Hold’em Poker League. I can personally vouch for her poker exploits as I was often eliminated from the game by the shrewd stylings of “Poker Mom”.

Mom would work hard, but also knew how to play. She was one of the gang.

In Closing

We are not saying goodbye today. We are recognizing and celebrating the life of someone I truly admire. Mom’s lessons were many; not by her words, but by her deeds. She would not want us to mourn her passing, she would want us to love each other deeply and perhaps draw a page or two from her lessons in life.

Seize the adventures that life presents you with sincere zest and zeal. Look around at the people in your family, circle of friends, and your community. See and celebrate the good in them and overlook their misgivings. Place both hands on the sternwheeler of your ship as you sail the High C’s. Be steadfast in the storms and be grateful for the calm waters. May mom’s life serve as an enduring lighthouse from which we all draw inspiration.

Love you mom.

Phillip Myles

Goodbye Phil. Rest in peace my brother, rest in peace.

I woke up this morning knowing that I was going to resume my blogging ritual. I took a week off after learning of Phil’s passing. It was my time to reflect and let my mind wander through the past memories of Phil and our various gatherings in the past. I woke this morning knowing that I would blog, but not knowing how I would write and what words I would say. I do not want to Eulogize Phil in this post, as I do not think I have the words or talent to do the task the honour it deserves. I think I will just let some words flow as they come into consciousness.

The loss of a sibling is hard to describe. Phil’s health had been deteriorating for years and his quality of life was not very good. It is good that he is no longer suffering. It is good that he may now rest. I am sad that he is gone.

Phil had a tremendous love of family and family gatherings and family bonds were very important to him. His work on the family genealogy and family reunions brought many distant relatives together. I have to admit, that without Phil’s efforts, I would probably not have any connections to many of my cousins. Growing up in Eastern Canada, I was thousands of miles away from most of my relatives. As a young man growing up, I would not have pursued those relationships, were it not for Phil’s dedication to family and heritage. In the end, Phil provided the family with one more gathering; his funeral. Even in death the crazy bugger still manages to bring us all together.

Phil & Bert at Waterton Park

Gathering at his place before the funeral we spent time with Roberta and Phil’s family. We saw many pictures that brought back laughs, tears, old stories, and much more. It was heartwarming to see the pictures and hear the tales of past deeds. I owe much of my sense and definition of family to Phil. His efforts to strengthen family bonds were noble and fruitful. Thank you Phil.

I really value the times when family gathers. I really value the bonds that grow and strengthen between siblings, cousins, uncles, nephews, nieces, parents, children, and grand-children. As I grow older, these things mean even more to me. I will not take these things for granted.

Siblings Take a Dip

Bonnie - Brittanie - Austin - Carmen

Silly Moment at the Swimming Hole

One of my last memories of Phil was from a few year’s ago when he and his wife Roberta came to Regina for a visit. It was a sunny fall day. We harvested the apples off of our apple trees, put a fire in the fire pit, and played cribbage outside. Cribbage is a game synonymous with our family. It was been played by at least 5 generations in our family. I look back at that autumn day very fondly.

Phil & Matt Playing Crib

So Phil, I will once again say thank you for highlighting the value of family connections and heritage. Goodbye Phil. Rest in peace my brother, rest in peace.

Your spirit soars from the valley floor
To the mountains high you reach the sky
You ride the breeze on land and seas
You’ll walk beside me for evermore

That is one of my generic sayings; “Stuff & Things”. When I am not quite sure what to call something, it gets lumped into the category of Stuff & Things. That is what I am feeling this morning; a general happiness and contentment. It is not directed at anything specific, just, well, you know, at stuff & things. Catchy, isn’t it.

My original intention was to blog about various facets of the canoe trip this week. To isolate parts of the trip that I felt very grateful for. This morning it would have felt a bit forced, as I have this very warm sense of contentment with everything around me. I had three board game evenings this week which provided a great cerebral counterpoint to the physicality of the canoe trip. My life feels like it is in a wonderful balance. I am quite happy.

I am sitting here this morning, enjoying a cup of coffee pondering all of the goodness and abundance of joy. My work is going well with some challenging and fun projects on the docket, Kathy & I are in a very good place in our lives, There is a purring cat sitting next to me, the air outside has a crisp hint of cool fresh autumn, (my favourite season), life is good.

I am looking forward to Guinness Breakfast tomorrow, followed by an afternoon cooking Lobster and having a beer or two by the fire. There is absolutely nothing I can think of to complain about. Conscious gratitude has its own rewards I guess. Happiness comes when we resolve to be happy. Seems simple enough. Wow. Anyways, enough of this hallmark moment, I think I will head into the office and work on some projects before I pronounce the work week at a close.

Here is to the stuff & things in our lives. That “Je ne c’est pas” collection of goodness that surrounds us like a womb of awesome.

Namaste,
Matt

An open mind sees the world reflected within them, but a closed mind looks for the world to be their reflection. ~ Brian Winkler

“How could I possibly get lost, when everyone tells me where to go?” Well, my Garmin certainly tells me where to go. I have been a fan of GPS Technology and handheld units for a number of years now. My first GPS was a Garmin 76s. I currently have two other Garmin handheld units; a 60Cx and a Colorado 300.

Growing up, I was always fascinated with maps and cartography. The topographic lines, the symbols, I found it to be very captivating. I remember looking at various World Atlas’ or globes and being amazed at the diversity of geography. Guess I am a bit of a map geek. So, it was not much of a stretch for me to want to own a GPS (or two). On our recent canoe trip, we used the GPS to navigate around the maze of islands, we tracked our distance and captured the route we had paddled. It was a handy device to have along. Kathy made sure we had proper paper maps and compass; it is always wise to have an analog backup.

I started Geocaching about 8 years ago and have found a little over 300 hidden caches over that period. I run hot and cold on Geocaching, but it certainly is a fun way to explore outdoors. The newest GPS units have geocaching capabilities built right into the unit. Very handy as now the caching experience can be paperless and spontaneous.

Kathy and I also have a Garmin Nuvi for driving navigation and the features contained in those units are quite amazing. Just outside of Portland Oregon, our Nuvi directed us to take another route into the city to avoid heavy traffic so we could save 10 minutes of driving time. I was quite amazed. Additionally, the alerts for Red light cameras is kind of cool too.

Not sure where all of this is going with new developments, but I continue to be amazed at the capabilities. The next big area of feature development and exploration is bound to be in the arena of smartphones. The sky is the limit. It will be very exciting to follow this over the next few years. Today, I am thankful that my childhood fascination with maps is alive and gets some cool technology to augment the enjoyment of exploring.

I have an existential map. It has ‘You are here’ written all over it. ~ Steven Wright

The water up North was just too inviting to pass up. I simply had to go swimming. I probably went swimming more in the week while on this canoe trip than I had in the previous ten years combined. I enjoy swimming, but I cannot stand chlorinated pools. Give me the ocean, a nice swimming hole in a river, or a peaceful lake.

It felt good to stretch out the back in the water after a day of paddling. The swim was a good way to re-invigorate and clean up. Kathy was in the water much more than I was and was a good inspiration for me to go. Once I established a pattern of swimming, I needed no coaching to hit the water. Very enjoyable, very relaxing, and much appreciated.

The water is your friend.  You don’t have to fight with water, just share the same spirit as the water, and it will help you move.  ~ Aleksandr Popov