It's a foggy, snowy day at the farmette. Not very cold, but very dreary. We're all feeling a little dreary around here since Rob's older brother Bill died last week.
Bill was very well loved by his family and I was fortunate to be able to meet him and the rest of the clan at a reunion in Prince Albert Saskatchewan five and half years ago. Rob was also able to fly out in September to be with him when Bill's health took a turn for the worse.
Bill had four daughters with Vicky, who we lost last year. The combination of a Scots man and Cree woman made for some amazing progeny - and there are lots of them. Four daughters plus all their kids and now their kids' kids. Smart, accomplished and really fun to be around. Here's most of the crew from back in summer, 2014. You can hardly tell we all had an absolute blast.
While he's gone now, he had a really good run and a will to live like I've never seen. For example, in his forties, he suffered a life-threatening stroke that left him paralyzed on one side of his body. Through grit and determination, he not only got back on his feet, he went to university and got a degree!
The party was instigated by Rob's niece Cathy, who lives in British Columbia. She's a corker, as well. Daughter of his brother Iain who died way too young in his fifties.
Cathy's got the Wilson gene for toughing things out, too. She had a bout with cancer last year and beat the rotten disease.
We're hoping that Bill's daughter Wanda and her daughter Bianca (Bean) will be able to come visit the farmette this summer. They're planning a road trip to Halifax to see Bean's son Mael play the bagpipes in a competition there. I hope it all works out. As you can see, Rob and Wanda get along pretty well. I really like her, too.
While Bill could get a bit feisty with his rants and views on politics (he was an unrepentant Communist), he certainly sparked up people's lives and encouraged all his kids, grandkids and great grandkids to get a good education and to be good people. You can't get better than that for a legacy. Good night Bill. Sleep well.