It doesn't take much

As my cousin Tim Burtch often says, LIFE IS GOOD! 

This weekend that just passed has yet again proven that there's infinite wisdom in those simple words as I enjoyed a few events that left me smiling widely, my soul enriched, and my body thankful.

The world of education is not a really big place, especially if you are involved with extra-curricular activities, usually meaning that names and faces of teachers at other schools are familiar. When I spent all of those years at Central, I was familiar with many of the North teachers who so willing donated their time for sports, especially the sports I was interested in. Although they were often a passing acquaintance, there was mutual respect and admiration since we were generally "cut from the same cloth" with similar background stories about paying it forward for the gifts we enjoyed as high school athletes.

One of those familiar faces was Gary Hamilton at Barrie North.

Once the closing of Central passed, the dust settled with my transfer, and the anxiety of changing schools after so many years waned, I began to build some new bridges with the long time HPE staff at Barrie North, a feat that was made infinitely easier by their kind hearts, welcoming smiles, and positive attitudes. Our group quickly hurdled the awkwardness of new friendships, sharing our stories from the "trenches", and swiftly finding commonalities in both personality and mindset. While all of my new colleagues became new friends at a staggering pace, there was a just a shade more connection with Gary. It was not a significant amount, but palpable and recognizable, born out of a genuine intention on his part to strengthen the bonds of our emerging friendship. Gary is kind, warm, positive, engaging, funny, and caring all bottled up in a larger-than-life personality that endears him to the staff and students that he interacts with. His booming baritone echos throughout the halls of North as he kibitzes and celebrates the great things housed within North's walls ... and its surroundings.

The greatest compliment I can give Gary is that he's really easy to be friends with.

A few weeks back, one of the football coaches, Ian Hunter, reached out to me with news that Gary was turning 50 and his wife Pam wished to surprise him with a bit of a gathering. Ian wanted to know if I wised to join in. It might seem pretty innocent, but I will tell you that it struck my as extremely generous and flattering that I was considered by Ian and Gary's family as someone that should be there to celebrate said milestone. Even though I was now living in Guelph, I knew that I had to put this occasion in the calendar because I felt strongly that I needed to show Gary how much his friendship meant to me.

The big event turned out to be a new experience since Pam had arranged the affair at Linx Kitchen + Social, a relatively new establishment in Barrie's south end that featured high end golf simulators in a licensed restaurant. Really, if you like golf, this place is an oasis in the frozen tundra of a Canadian springtime, where you can swing the clubs with your pals while you consume things that you know are taboo, but are so tasty that you choose the path of debauchery willingly. Upon arriving at Linx, I realized that the relatively small group was split along lines of school buddies and life friends, and as I would have guessed, despite being from a wide assortment of backgrounds, we were all similar in personality. I even got the added bonus of spending some time with my nephew Marcus, my brother Rob's firstborn, who has spent the years since graduating from North assisting Gary with the football program. Suffice it to say there was a lot of banter, smiling, and laughing as we enjoyed an informal 9-hole tournament complete with longest drives, closest to the pins, low gross scores, and mulligans ... or F12's ... this was a computer simulator after all.

As anyone who knows Gary at all might suspect, he was incredulous that so many that he values would make the effort to be there, felt humbled by the gesture, and thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon. Pam had arranged for some most delicious snacks at each of the simulators, leaving me feel a little embarrassed by her extreme generosity, compounded by the fact that she wouldn't allow me to make a contribution to the cost. I had brought a small token of friendship with a customary birthday card, complete with a personal message about the value I assign to our friendship, but I was floored by a text from Gary as I was returning to Guelph whose message prompted an unaccustomed blushing response, a big deal if you know me at all. 

Yep, Gary is really easy to be friends with.

If you were paying any attention during that weekend, you will have noticed that Mother Nature felt just a wee bit reticent about her recent snow storms and gifted us with one of the most fantastic Sundays on the 2022 calendar. With warm 20+ C temperatures, cloudless skies, and heavenly breezes it was idyllic to say the least. As you might have guessed, there was no way that this bike lover wasn't going to rip off a glorious chunk of km's in celebration of such an event. Settling into my ride with no particular destination in mind, I was entranced once again by the rural beauty of the Guelph area, the agricultural business of spring in full display, the scents of nature blossoming filling my nostrils, and the thrills of being back outside on my steed. My meanderings soon pointed toward the hamlet of Erin and its famous cycling destination, the Tin Roof Cafe, a popular waypoint for travellers of any mode, thanks to it's tremendous assortment of delectable treats. You don't have to be a cyclist to recognize the dopamine-induced glory of a piping hot coffee and a fresh ginger snap cookie ... but it certainly helps. If you aren't one, and you'd like some help with finding a choice little bakery in your area, seek out a local cyclist because they always know where the hidden gems are. Hey, it's a bike thing!

If those happenings weren't enough to pull at the corners of your grin, the piece de resistance was my inaugural exposure to the phenomenon that is the adult basketball league hosted by the Athlete Institute in Orangeville. Having accepted the assignment to referee a few games, I was venturing into uncharted waters, complete with anxiety-spawned snapping alligators born from past adult league experiences, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that while there were definitely a few gators, they were relatively harmless and docile. The institute was filled with teenage spirit, albeit bottled up in the girth of middle age, as yesterday-year's athletes struggled to find their game as their mind's vision was unmatched by their body's production, prompting frustration that occasionally targeted this NEWB "zebra" about calls missed or made. It sounds way worse than it was and I found myself on many occasions audibly laughing at the antics before my eyes. 

As I parked the RAV in the late night darkness, I found myself pausing in recollection of the blessings bestowed upon me, especially those of the past 48 hours, and I caught the twinkle of the streetlight in the wrinkled corner of my eye as I glanced in the rearview mirror. 

LIFE is most assuredly GOOD.