The Passion of Les Habitant Fans
April 25, 2011 § 5 Comments
It all started when I was 10 years old. I wondered what the sirens were all about as my Dad watched hockey.
I was hearing, of course, the signal to begin and end the periods at the fabled Montreal Forum where the Canadiens, a.k.a the Habs, played prior to moving in the Bell Centre.
My initiation into Hab Nation began in the spring of 1971, 40 years ago. This blog is an account of how I and other men and women across the country have become diehard fans invariably as a family custom.
I started watching the Habs play against the heavily favoured Boston Bruins, who they would upset in seven games in the first round of the playoffs that year. As I write, the Canadiens are once again the underdog versus the same team in this year’s post-season.
A love for the team attired in rouge, blanc et bleu with a CH on the front of their jerseys would be one of the things my late father and I would share over the years.
The torch has been passed on to support this storied sports franchise which has won the second most championships in professional sports with 24. Only the New York Yankees have more banners.
I was immediately hooked as the upstart team went on to win the Cup in my infancy as a fan, beating Boston, the Minnesota North Stars and the Chicago Blackhawks.
What a great time to become a fan of the Canadiens – they would capture six Cups in the 1970s, including four in a row, from 1976 to 1979.
The number of championships would dwindle after that – just two since – but the fervent desire to win never ceases in Montreal and for fans of the Canadiens elsewhere. Hockey is a religion in Quebec and I couldn’t help but be drawn in by the passion.
Although the Canadiens were not the favourites in 1971, I was attracted by their tradition for winning and commitment to be the best.
Some of my lifetime heroes came from that era of hockey, particularly Bob Gainey, who epitomized how I believe an athlete or any professional should conduct themselves — make every shift count.
He would later coach in Minnesota and was general manager in Dallas when they won the Cup. He also had executive duties with the Habs and served two stints behind the bench.
The highlight of my being a member of the Hab faithful came in 1979 during a student exchange between Northern Lights College in my hometown of Dawson Creek, B.C. and Marianopolis College in Montreal.
We’d been told from the beginning that the March 22 game between Montreal and the New York Islanders was already sold out.
On the day of the game, though, two classmates and I decided to go to the Forum to get souvenirs so we could say we’d been to the Canadiens rink.
After loading up on Hab paraphernalia, we checked in at Marianopolis College where our liaison asked us if we’d like to go to the game that night. We said in unison “What game?”
It turned out Charles Bromfman, owner of the Expos at the time, was in Florida for spring training and his tickets became available. We jumped at the chance.
I recall to this day walking around a few feet off the ground. I have never been so excited.
The Habs lost that game but would go on to win the Cup that year. They almost didn’t make it, but for the famed May 10 gaffe by Bruin coach Don Cherry. A late too many men on the ice penalty in the seventh game against Boston allowed Montreal to tie the game and win it in overtime, propelling the Habs on to the final against the Rangers.
I would get to meet Guy Lafleur, who scored the equalizing goal, years later at an oldtimers’ game in Sault Ste. Marie. I got to speak briefly with Ken Dryden who was general manager of the Maple Leafs when I attended the final game at the Gardens.
Another favourite moment was having a friend get an autographed copy of Jean Beliveau’s autobiography. My dog, Jasper, chewed the book to bits, with only the signature page remaining intact.
My wife knew how much the book meant to me so she didn’t share the news of the book’s fate until six months later.
A trip to the conference finals last spring stoked up the fire for Hab fans again. I knew my passion hadn’t subsided. It was a sick feeling losing to the Flyers.
I am not alone in my passion for following the Habs.
Here in Grande Prairie, Tom Pura at the Chamber is Commerce, is well known for being a big booster of the Habs and the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
He, too, started following the Habs in 1971.
“The obsession really hit during the four straight run from ’76 to ’79,” he recalls.
“I had to sit in the same spot in the same position to watch their games … very superstitious. They were entertaining to watch including the golden tones of Danny Gallivan and Dick Irvin. The cups in ’86 and ’93 were pleasant surprises, but nothing compares to the ’70s for me.
“I celebrated every win and took every loss hard. It seems silly to a lot of people but everyone should have a passion for something. Mine was always sports.
“I knew those teams in the 70s inside and out, every stat, every number and name, every idiosyncrasy, and we imitated our heroes in road hockey or tennis court hockey or floor hockey. I never actually played ice hockey, but I was Larry Robinson on defence and Ken Dryden in goal and Pete Mahovlich at forward because i was one of the taller kids,” says Tom. “I even remember Larry Robinson’s overtime goal as a rookie in ’73 against the Flyers. I was six not yet seven and recreating that shot from behind the blue line in my living room with a plastic stick and puck.”
For Trista Lefave, a friend from Cornwall, Ont., who’s studying at the University of Ottawa to be a teacher, following the Habs started at an early age.
“My father is a French-Canadian from Quebec and a huge Habs fan.”
Her father, whose house is a shrine to the Habs, would delight in buying Canadien-themed Christmas presents for family members.
“He bought me and my brother Habs jerseys, and other things like pajamas or blankets. He’s the one who got us into the Habs, anything Habs. And now for birthdays and Christmas my sisters, brother, mom and I give Habs presents to each other, and we passed along our love for the Canadiens to my nieces and nephews so it’s all in the family.
“I grew up watching the Canadiens play and cheering on Patrick Roy. I became a very dedicated and diehard fanatic for the Habs.”
Trista has watched the Habs play in Ottawa but awaits her first game at the Bell Centre.
Last November, she did get to meet her favourite player, forward Mike Cammalleri, along with coach Jacques Martin, assistant Perry Pearn, and former Hab Maxim Lapierre at an event at the Bell Centre. Retired Habs Rejean Houle and Yvon Lambert were also on hand.
Much like I grew up wearing a Yvan Cournoyer’s #12 jersey and admiring the speed that would earn him the nickname Roadrunner, Trista appreciates that Cammalleri is not a big player, but is a sniper nonetheless.
“He’s a true Canadian hockey player. He loves being a Montreal Canadien. I just love his whole demeanor, his dedication, passion and his attitude. He’s not as big as everyone else, but he plays with heart and shows his skills are just as great and better than some. I respect that a lot.
“The thing I find amazing is everyone who plays on the Habs always talks about what an amazing team it is to play for, how dedicated and passionate the fans are and how that makes them want to play. Brian Gionta even said he wouldn’t have signed with the Habs had it not been for the passionate fans. We love our sport and take it seriously and it’s amazing that the players see our love for the game and for them.”
Another friend, Hélène LeGendre Drake, an audiologist who lives in Whitby, Ont., returned to her Hab roots in recent years.
“When I was very young living in eastern Quebec, my Dad and I would watch the game on Saturday nights. It was the best night of the week! Aside from the game, it was so nice to see my Dad in such a good mood, and fun for me to get to eat junk food and stay up way past my bedtime,” she recalls fondly.
“My real passion for the Montreal Canadiens started about six years ago after a friend invited me to a pre-season game at the Bell Centre. Something magical happened at that game, it was so exhilarating! And after that experience, I was simply hooked!
“I knew that I would be making the trip from Toronto to Montreal many times to see my beloved team! I usually manage to attend three games in Montreal per season. I’ve even made the awesome trip to California last year to see the games versus LA and Anaheim.
“I have only met Canadien players once, at the Toronto Hockey Hall of Fame in 2006. Each player signed our poster and chatted with us a bit. It really was surreal. The only two players remaining with that team are Tomas Plekanec, who happens to be my favourite player, and Andrei Markov.
“I know now that I am a true fan of the Montreal Canadiens for life. It has become my passion. Win or lose, I bleed bleu, blanc, rouge!”
Meanwhile, here in Grande Prairie, hope springs eternal that the Habs will once again rise to the top and win hockey’s Holy Grail.
Reconnecting
November 15, 2010 § 1 Comment
Image via Wikipedia
I grew up in a dysfunctional family where I was disconnected with many uncles, aunts, cousins and second cousins. That was, in addition, to the internal strife.
Since becoming an adult, I’ve always found that my better friends became closer than family. I never really made an effort to reconnect with any relatives, located mostly in B.C. and Alberta and the Western United States.
However, about five years ago, I made an exception to my rule. I followed my curiosity and, this summer, brought my sleuthing on an impromptu family search to a happy conclusion. No sweat for a former newspaper reporter. Ironically, it is Joyce who is the genealogist in the family.
It all started when I Googled myself. I do this every once in a while to see how articles or information containing my name appear on the World Wide Web since I am routinely quoted in the media. Also, there is a David Olinger at the Denver Post. I have never connected with him, but since he’s a journalist, I like to follow the trail of the scribe with the same name.
As I was scrolling down through the entries on this one occasion, I came across the name Kelley Olinger in Victoria, B.C. I was intrigued by this name since there are many Olingers in Southern B.C., particularly the Okanagan. However I couldn’t remember seeing the name Kelley.
So, I dug a little deeper and discovered that Kelley is a real estate agent in Victoria. I sent a note via email just to see if she could be part of my extended clan, particularly in Kelowna.
Sure enough, she is cousin Peter Olinger’s daughter.
Kelley and I emailed back and forth several times and later connected via Facebook. Then when Joyce, Peter (our son) and I moved to Grande Prairie in 2007, there was always a greater chance we would get to the West Coast in the not-too-distant future. Kelley long ago suggested that if we ever got over to the Island, we should look her up.
So, when we knew would be going to Vancouver Island in August, we followed up on that invitation. We met for a lovely lunch in Victoria.
It was during that encounter that Kelley reminded me that she had located her father’s birth mother through Facebook a couple of years ago.
As a result, Kelley facilitated a reunion in Edmonton and the families continue to correspond. It also closed chapters for both mother and son. As well, Kelley now has more family background for medical purposes.
It was a terrific story that would never have been possible without technology. In fact, my connection with Kelley would likely not have occurred without Google and my curiosity about my own name.
I have no idea what prompted me to reach out and enquire specifically as to Kelley’s connection with me. God knows, there are closer relatives than a second cousin I could have tracked down. Family dysfunction does that to you. Someone has to make the first move.
It just seemed right at the time. I am glad I did. Kelley is, too. After our visit, she offered to be our tour guide if we returned to Vancouver via Victoria. With balmy conditions in Parksville, however, we stayed extra time there and returned to the mainland via Nanaimo.
Next time, Second Cuz!
Making connections with long-lost family is a tricky business. Certainly, it was a lot more challenging for Kelley to connect her father with his birth mother. There is always the fear that they don’t care to be reunited. In my case, Kelley had never heard of me until consulting with her parents when I first contacted her. I could have been some wacko.
Having gone through the experience and hearing the story of Kelley’s family, I would certainly encourage anyone with the urge to reconnect to long-lost relatives to do so. Sure, you might get turned away. But looking at the cup half-full, you are more likely to be opening up a whole new world to yourself.
Go ahead, hop on the phone or get typing!
What’s In An Age?
August 24, 2010 § 4 Comments
Image by clevercupcakes via Flickr
So, I turn 50 on Saturday. Yes, a half-century old. The Big Five-Oh.
While this blog focuses on motivation and inspiration, you won’t find me using phrases like, “you are only as old as you feel” or “age is only a number.”
In fact, I’ve never had any strong feelings about reaching any significant age. This year is no different.
However, a colleague gave me pause for thought the other day. She remarked, “We are getting older, David.”
There is no doubt we are. But any reflection I do on the subject revolves around realizing that I continue to grow as a person and as a professional. I learn about myself and the world around me every day.
I aspire to the phrase that when you stop learning, you stop living.
Certainly the signs of advancing age are there – less hair and what I have left has streaks of what I refer to as “Arctic blond” otherwise known as grey.
I can’t do some of the physical things I used to do as well or with as much stamina – the onset of Type 2 diabetes has had a noticeable effect on my eyesight and is likely responsible for the degenerative discs in my neck.
And because I take medicine for diabetes, I don’t drink alcohol. So, if I want to party hardy, I won’t do it by consuming booze.
However, I am content that virtually all the things I have ever really liked to do, I can still enjoy wholeheartedly.
I remain an avid sports fan. I still like to crank up the tunes – and I have yet to reach the stage where I need to. Live theatre is a great interest and being in the great outdoors is an enjoyable daily occurrence with my wife and Jasper, our dog. I still relish hiking and tent camping.
I continue to maintain the motto: Never grow up. Just age gracefully.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned is the importance of fostering great friendships.
I’ll be marking The Big Day with Joyce by visiting some of them – the family I celebrated with while boarding at their home 30 years ago when I was attending college in Richmond, B.C.
Friendships can also occur with anyone of any age and background. It’s really a matter of connecting with people who are meaningful and enhance your life. It’s not just who you connect with but how.
For example, my blog mate, Wendy, has become a close friend since we met at a conference in May 2009. Soon after, we realized we had much in common and decided to create this blog to develop content for inspirational and motivational book(s) and collaborate on other projects.
Wendy is 28 and I am old enough to be her parent yet we can readily finish each other’s sentences and routinely one of us says something that sparks ideas for the other. We often enjoy long conversations via Skype between Grande Prairie and Calgary.
She has remarked that I am her 20 years from now.
It would be a great loss if either one of us had put up barriers to this connection.
I’ve been inspired by other younger people lately.
The City of Grande Prairie’s Economic Development Officer, Brian Glavin, just turned 25. He has the wisdom and poise of someone much older. This makes him a joy to work with and talk to on any subject.
Brian is bound to be a leader in our organization for many years to come and will have a great impact on his community or in any venture he takes on.
Then there’s Mary Leong who I had the occasion to speak with a few times this summer through her internship in Grande Prairie helping youth seek employment.
Mary, who grew up in Singapore and has been in Canada just five years, will go as far as her ambition takes her. I was immediately taken by her enthusiasm and wide array of interests.
She’s studying political science and psychology at the University of British Columbia. Her future will see her doing either research on how technology shapes cognition and its subsequent effects on political behaviour or something in foreign relations. Perhaps she will be an ambassador or a diplomat. Who knows, maybe she will be Prime Minister.
Mary has already accomplished much in her short life. I look forward to keeping tabs of what are sure to be many success stories authored by her in the future.
At the other end of the spectrum is my mother-in-law, Mary Black, who turned 87 in April. Visits with her bless you with her peacefulness and sense of simplicity. Plus, there is probably not a kinder, gentler, classier person in the world.
So, what is in an age? It’s up to you!
O Canada – True Patriot Love
June 30, 2010 § 2 Comments
I suppose it was only natural that the Canadian Public Relations Society national conference was held just a couple of weeks before our country’s birthday.
Several moments during the three-day event held in Regina June 13-15 evoked strong sentiments of patriotism – and I don’t know of anyone prouder of our great nation than myself.
First, I met people literally from sea to sea during the conference so there was already a special feeling to the event.
Since it’s been a long-term dream of mine to travel to every part of our country, I was thrilled with this great opportunity to network with these colleagues from near and far, a few I had connected with in person before, but most I only knew by name. Numerous, like me, were attending for the first time.
It is always wonderful to gather with people from your own profession. When they also happen to be from every part of our great land, it is a terrific time to learn more about our country – first hand from people who live in these other places.
While we occupy the second largest country in the world and there are definitely some regional characteristics, Canadians really don’t vary a lot from coast to coast. It is more the personalities of each region and accents that stand out.
For example, the opening meal of the conference was dubbed as a Fowl Dinner, essentially the fare one should expect from the region around Regina. Some diners were not sure what the small white objects were near the end of the food line. Some wondered what the white condiment was. Well, they were perogies, of course, and you would want sour cream to accompany them.
Next June, I will be able to fill part of my Canadian travel void since the conference is scheduled for St. John, New Brunswick.
I have a brother-in-law who teaches at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, so it will be wonderful to make a side trip. Oddly enough, we will make it to the East Coast faster living in Alberta than by being in Ontario for 20 years. Since my wife and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary, it will be a splendid opportunity to make a holiday of it.
Another moment of nationalist feeling came when Lynda Havertock, president and CEO of Tourism Saskatchewan, gave an inspiring account of efforts to market the province in recent years.
It gave me pause for thought because a lot of people think of Saskatchewan mainly in terms of its major cities of Regina and Saskatoon, the prairies and, of course, the Roughriders.
Most people would not think the province could offer water enthusiasts a body of water the size of Lake Diefenbaker or other remarkable landscapes like the Cypress Hills.
Everyone has heard the jokes of how you will begin your day driving across Saskatchewan and can see far off in the distance where your day is going to end.
What this tells me is that if you take time to stop, every part of our country has something to offer.
An especially poignant moment came when our group stopped in at the RCMP headquarters and took in a presentation by new the latest crop of new officers. I had my photo taken with new recruits from my current location in Grande Prairie and my former community of Sault Ste. Marie.
It caused a few misty eyes to consider these and other new officers are about to put their lives on the line every day for residents near and far from their homes.
The highlight of the conference was Peter Mansbridge.
I have never found the CBC anchor to elicit much emotion from me, but I was extremely proud to be a Canadian when he illustrated the impact of what people from our country have had abroad.
He should know. Mansbridge has travelled the world over countless times in his decades with our national broadcaster.
Mansbridge recounted how he encountered a young girl in Sri Lanka who had wonderful thoughts of Canada thanks to medical aid administered by nurses from Vancouver. They had thought it to be imperative that they travel to the tiny country when natural disaster wreaked havoc.
He reminded us that the Dutch memory of Canadian troops liberating their country in World War II lives on in school children today. They visit grave sites of our fallen soldiers from that conflict.
Then there is the young woman he met from Afghanistan who is so taken with her new country of Canada that she feels compelled to return to her homeland to tell people there how good it is here.
As Canada Day approaches, it was great to have even more reasons to feel good about this nation.
Many Canadians are so busy navel gazing that they fail to recognize just how wonderful our own country is. Sometimes it takes a visitor from another country or someone who has been abroad to drive that message home for us.
I enjoyed my visit to Regina. I learned even more about a part of the country I had only previously seen driving back and forth across the country.
It was also great to be connect with a lot of new colleagues. I look forward on gaining additional perspectives on our great nation next year in St. John.
Happy Birthday, Canada, Our Home and Native Land!
Music Makes the Moment
May 31, 2010 § 17 Comments
It was a typical Saturday morning as I was getting ready to walk the dog.
Our weekend morning ritual begins with sitting in the hot tub listening to some tunes and guzzling some freshly-brewed java. The Beatles’ Here Comes the Sun came on as I re-entered the house for breakfast before hitting the trail.
What a perfect song to begin the day! Mr. Sun smiled down on a great trek.
And who better than the Beatles to provide the background music to an uplifting day? They are arguably the most important band of all time. Their music is timeless – often imitated, never duplicated.
As I walked, I began musing about how important music is to me, either making my day when I am already happy or helping me come to terms with life when I’m down.
It’s only natural that either Wendy or I would write about music in this blog. We often use a lyric from a song or the name of a tune to describe a situation or an idea when we speak. I began an earlier blog with a lyric from Tom Cochrane’s Life is a Highway.
My wife says I use musical lines at the drop of a hat.
She’s right. Where better than stories told through the lyrics of music to find a handy comparator? Over time, every conceivable situation has been described in song.
Although I’m a good old time rock and roll fan, the blues and jazz are also favourite genres.
Different music suits varying situations.
While a pop tune from the Fab Four is perfect to spring out the door on a walk with the dog, I prefer nothing more than the gritty, cutting words of Warren Zevon in songs like Lawyers, Guns and Money while cleaning up in the kitchen. Not sure why. Perhaps getting involved in the late singer/songwriter’s ballads is a good way to forget that I’m doing a task that no one relishes.
I have seen many of my beloved performers in concert, including Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, B.B. King, the Rolling Stones, George Thorogood, Stevie Ray Vaughan, ZZ Top, Fleetwood Mac, Jeff Healey, Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman, and Colin James.
Some of my favourite lyrics have come from these artists.
When I say or do something on the irreverent side, Thorogood provides the perfect line … Bbbaad to the Bone.
Springsteen and Fleetwood Mac bring hope with Keep Your Eye on the Prize (The Boss did a remake of the Pete Seeger song on his tribute album to the folk legend) and Don’t Stop (a song from the 1977 Rumours album) respectively.
Taking care of Business from Bachman’s BTO days was a perfect anthem for my time operating a communications firm.
Other songs have even deeper meaning.
Simon and Garfunkel’s hit Bridge Over Troubled Waters is a song I think of when I’ve brought peace to a situation or helped someone in need of a friend. It was also chosen by my Grade 7 class for confirmation.
My eyes well up when I hear the Beatles Let it Be because of its gripping inspirational quality.
What could be more heartening than John Lennon’s Imagine? Ironically, this peace-preaching musician would die at the hands of a crazed gunman.
Carolyn Dawn Johnson’s Complicated song reminds me of how I’ve put up barriers at times with new people in my life.
Billy Joel’s Innocent Man was important to me when I began the relationship with my best friend and now wife.
I’ve used the Trooper song Raise a little Hell to remind people who are bemoaning their lot in life that it is up to them to take matters into their own hands:
If you don’t like
What you got
Why don’t you change it?
If your world is all screwed up
Rearrange it
Raise a little Hell …
There is no better way than music to pay tribute to someone you care about. We recently said goodbye to Frank Drodge of our Facilities Department at the City of Grande Prairie. He died far too young at age 50 on May 10. Frank was also known as the drummer and promoter of the local band Anywhere But Here.
Frank was remembered for his hard work, kindness and good cheer and I loved exchanging yarns of favourite concerts and bands.
I bid you adieu, Frank, with a favourite song title from Bob Seger.
Rock and Roll Never Forgets.
Other songs bring back happy memories.
My father couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, but I can remember him often reciting a favourite song written during the First World War, There’s A Long, Long Trail – A Winding.
I remember little from my high school graduation – come on now, it was 32 years ago – but recall vividly Queen’s We Will Rock You belting out at the bush party I attended (I wonder if my Dad ever discovered that I lifted a bottle of rum from his liquor cabinet for the occasion).
Nothing is more memorable than the prank I pulled on my wife-to-be at the 1983 St. Paul Journal Christmas Party. I bet her dinner that the “next song” would be Seger’s Old Time Rock and Roll.
Little did she know that the DJ was also the bus driver for the hockey team I covered for the paper, and I’d rigged the wager. Mmm, that was good Chinese food. I later reciprocated with a spaghetti dinner.
There are campfire songs to enjoy with a bunch of friends. Show tunes such as those from the Beverly Hillbillies and Gilligan’s Island are fun to sing along to while making a long trip and needing to stay awake.
That was a fun memory during our overnight trip to the West Coast from Grande Prairie in 1987.
It was time to pull over for an early morning meal when we started into Raffi’s Down by the Bay!
So, music really does make the moment – sometimes it makes a sad moment happy. Other times, it helps makes sense of a situation.
At other instances, it is good just to take away the Sound of Silence.
Are you a rock? Are you an island?
May 17, 2010 § 1 Comment
What’s your typical response when dealing with a situation? Do you clamp down and not let anyone know what’s going on? Do you think you’re strong enough to weather it all on your own? Do you feel gratification when you’ve proved to yourself that you can handle anything? That you don’t actually NEED anyone? If you answer ‘yes’ to all of the previous questions… well, you and I were so very alike not that long ago. I had a need to prove to myself that I was strong enough, I was good enough and I could accomplish anything on my own. I could deal with any situation. Life couldn’t bring me down. I was a rock… I was an island.
At some very recent point, I pulled my head out of the sand long enough to realize just what it was I had done. I took a moment to step back and admire all that I had accomplished. I’ve done well with my career, live in a decent neighborhood, I’ve dealt with some pretty big life issues and I’m still standing on my own two feet. And I did it all by myself. The puzzling part was that the rest of the world wasn’t cheering me on when I emerged. Why weren’t they happy for me? Why couldn’t they see the struggles I had been through to get where I am? Why couldn’t they understand the reasons I had been working so hard for so long?
Because I was a rock and I was an island. Tough to the core. Unwavering. But here’s the thing: Rocks are hard to work with and islands are difficult to get go.
Nobody was cheering me on because none of them knew what was going on. My self importance, my need to prove something to myself had a much larger impact than I could have foreseen. And it’s an impact that I want to reverse.
I’m still proud of myself for my accomplishments, but I wonder how much easier everything could have been if I had taken the approach of a more malleable, connected material? As I opened up and began to share more with those that were once close to me, I found something extraordinary happened. All of those struggles, the trials and tribulations I sought to handle on my own didn’t seem so hard to deal with any more AND there were people applauding me along the way for everything I was trying to do.
So the questions remains – will I do it differently next time? You betchya. Except for me it’s not just about next time, it’s about every time. One day, one person and one situation at a time to create a new shape for me and a new connection in the world.
Spring Cleaning
April 5, 2010 § 2 Comments
It’s almost March. And it’s a beautifully sunny day in Calgary. In my apartment, my entire south facing wall is nothing but a huge window and a sliding door overlooking 17th Avenue. I don’t live in a big building, it’s only 6 floors in all, but there aren’t any bigger buildings behind me, and so the sun shines into my little abode pretty much the entire day. Today is the first day in a long time that I’ve been in the right mindset to check in with myself, take inventory of where I’m at and just see how I’m doing. In these kinds of moments, I can spend 20 minutes, sometimes more, just gazing out the window. Focusing on each car that goes by, each bird riding a current, and how the sun falls on my favourite leather chair just so.
Today, as I settled in to ponder and my gaze headed out the window, I noticed just how dirty the windows had gotten over the winter. It’s funny how we sometimes don’t notice the build up of dirt and grime over time, or how we’re willing to look through the dirt to see the world because we don’t really feel like washing that window.
Somehow, gazing through dirt just didn’t cut it today. It was time to wash the windows. I have these microfibre clothes made by a company called Norwex. There’s one specifically for windows and glass. You don’t need any cleaning agents. Just some water and the cloth. And boy, that cloth can clean a window and make it sparkle better than any bottle of Windex I’ve ever tried. In all, it only took me about 20 minutes to clean off the dirt inside and out. I’m back on my couch and the difference 20 minutes… 20 MINUTES… made for a clearer view is phenomenal.
How much scum and dirt do we let pile up on ourselves and on how’re we’re seeing the world around us because we’re too lazy to take a few minutes to wipe it clean? I want to compare looking out my windows now to looking out of them before being washed to that drinking and driving commercial where it shows how much your vision is impaired after each drink. How much less clear is our perspective with each layer of dirt that settles in (on our windows or in our lives)?
I’m sure I’ll be going through this exercise again. A few months will pass and I’ll notice that my window isn’t quite as clear as it could be, and that’s just from day to day exposure. It makes me think about my own housekeeping, all of the things I’m exposed to day to day that I don’t notice until they build up and just how much better I feel after it’s all been wiped away. Whether we think our lives are currently well put together, or there’s a pile of dirt that seems to have built up and soiled what we have to show the world, and what we can see of it, there’s always going to be some housekeeping to do for optimal performance. The good thing is, it doesn’t have to take a lot of effort to wipe things clean again.
Building the Circle of Life
March 22, 2010 § 3 Comments
I attended a funeral the other day and was reminded of my own father’s passing on just over 21 years ago. Hearing some of the same traditional hymns like The Old Rugged Cross brought back memories.
It was my supervisor’s father whose life we were celebrating. He’d lived into his 80s and, through the eulogy, I learned more about the person I report to. I couldn’t help but smile to myself at a couple of ‘ah ha’ moments when I heard characteristics that also describe my supervisor and explain more about who she is and why.
Traits get passed on without us even knowing it. I now wonder what people would notice ingrained in my son that would also be true of me.
When my dad died, less than three months before my son was born, it seemed very much like the Circle of Life experience from the Lion King. My father had planned to come visit us after the birth. It’s too bad he didn’t get the chance. It would have been one of the joys of his retiring years.
Within a month, my son will turn 21. His future, like an unpainted canvas, lies ahead of him, particularly since he has not determined a clear direction.
I wrote in this space earlier that I want him to find something he is passionate about with an ever-increasing amount of choices in our global marketplace. Like many young people, he plans to begin seeking his fortune in a larger centre, likely Edmonton.
Once he does, who knows where that will find him. He plans to work a year there to help make some decisions with a broader view of the world.
Maybe he will be like a young friend of mine, Megan Koprash, who worked as an office assistant in my business during high school. She finds herself working overseas after doing some globetrotting.
She’s supportive of Peter travelling to better understand his options. “There’s a great big world out there. It changed my life,” she told me when we spoke online today.
In her free-spirited way, Megan did a short stint in Taiwan before moving to England to teach, following her graduation from Lakehead University in Thunder Bay.
It will be three years in August since she began teaching in Essex County, near London. Megan has considered leaving there a few times, but something always makes her stay. I think the place fits her personality.
“I am a bit of a drifter and a dreamer,” she reminded me.
I have always admired Megan for being both carefree and committed to what she believes in. To this day, she’s the recipient of one of the best letters of reference among the many I’ve written.
Even in high school, Megan got it. I would allow her time off to audition for theatre productions and she would reciprocate on her own volition by working into the wee hours on deadline projects.
Megan is who she is because a great upbringing and support from her parents, Margie and Ron, in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
She will cite them when it comes to describing her success story later in life. Megan will go as far as her ambition takes her.
I’m pleased the letter of reference I wrote helped Megan get that job in Britain and to have been part of her early professional growth.
Megan’s parents did a fine job of enabling and encouraging their daughter to follow her dreams.
As a parent, you strive to leave some kind of legacy like that. I would like my son to see that I’ve pursued opportunities as they’ve been presented, allowing me to lead a very rich, rewarding and varied career.
My own father left his own trademark. I always thought of him as strong and invincible – that go to guy who was always there … so much so that months after he died, I went to pick up the phone to ask advice, only to remember that he would not be on the other end of the line.
His departure from this earth just after he started learning to enjoy himself was a lesson to me – to work toward the future but to not forget about living in the moment when good times are to be had.
Circle of Life scenarios are abundant and aren’t all associated with family members. For example, I think it is ironic that my blog mate, Wendy, was born just two months before I graduated from Kwantlen College in 1982. Somehow I think that is one of the things that link us.
In this relay called life, I enjoy passing the baton to others with less experience, helping them to advance into the fast lane with perspective and insight they wouldn’t otherwise have.
There’s no joy like having someone, whether a young friend or a family member, tell you that you made a difference in their lives.
The last week of 2009…
December 28, 2009 § 8 Comments
It’s the last week of 2009. This Christmas has been rare in that I haven’t gotten caught up in all of the hubbub. My stress levels have been at an all time low. I’ve enjoyed every moment, every person, and every morsel of food more than I ever have. And now, with the year on its final legs, I think I’m going to take this week to relive and relish the highlights of 2009, and decide how I will set the stage for 2010.
One way people attempt to start out a new year is with resolutions. And while the intentions behind resolutions are usually good, so many people have set themselves up for failure. The reasons for not following through on a resolution depend on person to person. For me, I think it’s been because there’s always that expectation that you try hard to follow through, but nobody ever actually makes them, so if you give up on your resolutions after a month or two… well, heck, at least you tried, right? This year, I want my resolutions to stick. And so they won’t be resolutions. Because taking one day out of the year to look at what you want and setting a goal isn’t enough. It takes changing our day to day to really make change in our lives.
I’ve been coming across the quote from Ghandi a lot lately “Be the change that you want to see in the world.” That has been my focus for 2009, and will continue to be my focus in 2010. Finding alignment in my own life and in what I want to see in the world. Being the change.
During the last couple of months, David and I have been talking about a New Year’s feature to do. We’ve gone to our networks for some feedback, and thought through a couple of iterations of what this might look like. We will be kicking off the New year with a bit of an experiment. Over the course of the first 10 weeks in 2010, we’ll be posting 10 Things to Inspire and Motivate in 2010.
All the best for a motivational and inspirational New Year.
Channel Surfing
December 14, 2009 § 3 Comments
It’s another boring night with nothing on. You’re on your couch passively flipping through the channels, trying to find something that will spark your interest for at least a minute. But as you go, the more you surf, the less you find, and the less you pay attention. You get lulled into a sense that there’s never anything on. And so you continue to move through channels, now at lightning speed. Click. Click. Click. Wait, what’s that? Nope, I’ve seen that before. Click.
Sometimes you settle on something to watch for a few minutes before passively clicking through to the next channel, but every now and again you hit the right frequency with that click and come across a program that piques your interest. It’s not that you were looking for this specific program, in fact you probably didn’t really know what you were looking for. But here it is. Out all of the hundreds of channels at all of the different times of day you’ve been through, for once, here it is.
I’ve been thinking about my life in terms of frequency lately. What frequency am I on? Do I like what I’m seeing? If I don’t, I change the channel until I find something that resonates with me.
There’s a bit of singing advice I heard from Matt Good that fits well here too. In order to get the most out of your voice and to hit all of the high notes, he’s learnt to sing from a place where his voice resonates inside of his mind, not from his vocal chords. He said that’s why Thom Yorke from Radiohead is always moving his head around so much. He’s finding the spots in which his voice hits just the right frequency.
Imagine the practice it takes to find that. Imagine the kind of head space you’ve got to be in to make that work. For me, that’s not from a knowing space, that’s from a feeling space. That’s being aware of your own mind enough to hear when those notes hit the right spot. And that may take some searching and practicing to find. But once you do, it’s pure gold.
Think of this now in terms of finding yourself through life, finding a point where things can resonate for you. You’ll need to have your feelers on as well as your thinking cap for this one. Think about how off life can feel when you’re not tuned into the right frequency, but how easy it is to just pick up the remote and change the channel until you like what’s on. Once you’re there, you stay for awhile, if it’s really good, you’ll come back and watch it again. So try that with your life, the more you find what feels right, what strikes a chord in you somewhere, the more your going to want to come back to that. The more you come back to that, the more you’ll like what you see. And soon, you may just find yourself another step closer to living passionately.
The Muse and Views 