The camper seems quiet without his deep voice and big laugh.

We dropped him off at the Christchurch airport with bear hugs all around and a promise to come see him next time we’re in Canada. We have to admire the European mount of his stag, after all.

After more than a year away it was a delight to have a visit from family and get a double handed grip on the roots that tie us all together. Not too many people would drop their lives like a hot rock to wing it around the world for a big adventure… but in our family, there are more than a few who are game.

It’s been one of those epic weeks, in which one of the giants from my childhood took it to the next generational level with my kids. I couldn’t help but smile when I overheard Dick talking about big things with Ezra, like he used to with me when I was a kid. I know that the boys will hear his voice every time they lean into a rifle stock, “Keep your cheek on the stock and your eye back off the scope!” Wise words from a man with a crescent shaped scar between his eyes!

Most of the week, Dick told stories:

• Stories of past hunts & Alaska
• Stories of his rock-n-roll era
• Stories of Vietnam, which my kids listened too with greater interest, having spent some time in the DMZ themselves
• Stories of my childhood
• Stories of Brule Lake
• Stories of his son Park playing bird-dog this fall hunting geese
• And he told jokes; lots of jokes.

“How are the Toronto Maple Leafs & the Titanic alike? ……..they both look great until they hit the ice!”

“How many men does it take to protect Paris? No one knows, they’ve never tried!”

And of course his one liners:

“It’s not rocket surgery!”

Regarding people who brag: “Big hat, no cattle.”

“I finally got it together… now where did I put it?”

… and a few others that just can’t make the blog! 😉

Suffice it to say, we will miss him! 

If you’re reading this, Uncle Dick, I hope you know how profoundly grateful we are for your life and your presence in ours. Thanks for “keeping your stick on the ice” in all of the important ways over the years that have lead you to now, and to your continued tending of your corner of our family garden. There are no words adequate to the task of saying, “Thank you,” for the many gifts given this week. It will live in all of our hearts and our memories forever. Gifts of self and time are the only ones that matter in the end. You are much, much loved!