Monday, July 17, 2023
I was hoping to be here in person but I suffered a major stroke some years ago and have been paralyzed for the last five years on the left side so travelling, renting a car and other things including even getting dressed is difficult so please pardon my absence.
So what is a big brother during the course of a lifetime? The first thing that comes to mind was WHAT A pain in the neck - in the neck and dad put you back into focus when you strayed from the accepted norm in our family dictated daily by the regimental sergeant major my dad still thought that he was in and we were his soldiers.
The second most important thing was that he was clearly an example for us to follow. My brothers and sister certainly knew that it was the right course to follow because he always managed to keep out of my father’s punishment brigade.
Arriving in Canada from Holland first course of business was to learn to speak English and to integrate into Canadian society. My father had a firm grip on what he wanted to do in Canada which was to be Canadians with the Dutch background, and another important aspect of my father’s concept of Canada was that we were to get as much education as we could as quickly as we could so it so it was always a contest to see if you pronounce the words correctly and to read the Toronto Star from cover to cover and even have discussions and articles as long as they were not contrary to my father’s views or beliefs. Being a poor immigrant family money played an important part in our daily lives it was not long before we found out that there is money to be made delivering papers. The Toronto Star was very pleased to recruit three brothers in the West of PORT CREDIT to deliver over 100 papers per night to various locations near our homes. Delivering papers was more than just dropping them off. You had to keep track of your customers and then the collections every Saturday morning and if you’re lucky you can earn yourself $.50 in tips which was a king’s ransom in those days - to get a bottle of Coke in a machine for nickel.
The daily grind of delivering papers, however, put a damper in playing sports and other after school activities but that we always found time to run play with kids in our block who were also in the same situation
Dick and I both enjoyed the Boy Scouts of Canada movement. The major problem being with that group was that every time Dick got a badge, I would have to go get one too - beginning a never-ending contest. We both would become Queen scouts and later graduated to the Rovers and have a successful career with the Crusader rover crew behind the First United Church in Port Credit. We had many marvellous camping trips, jamboree’s and the campfires.
The problem having an older brother who is bigger than you was that I was always picked last for most team activities. That was soon to change however in grades seven and eight when I discovered that if I tried hard I can actually beat my brother in running in swimming and various other activities and lo and behold I was no longer picked last and our status solidified as the LOOYE BOYS from the West End of corporate as a dominant force to be reckoned with under the leadership of my brother Dick was not a good fighter or aggressive but could talk a mile an hour which kept us out of trouble on numerous occasions - a good start on his diplomatic career
The next major events in our family all occurred at the Lions Club pool in Port Credit were the four of us - that’s Dick, John, Aart and Ron - all hung out for hours on end. From the time the pool opened to when it closed at 8:00pm, with a short timeout to deliver papers, eat supper and then ride your bicycle back to the pool. The key challenge the game was to get as many Red Cross swimming badges as you could before anybody else in the family. The problem with the Red Cross program was that it was partially based on age. While I could pass all the tests, I could not do the exam because I was old enough. So my big brother always had a badge before me. The challenge always was to get the fastest badges in the Red Cross series. And my effort was always to repeat my brother which I did on many occasion.
The next major episodes which was track and field - again all efforts were made to be the best and had it not been for a tragic football accident, he would’ve been the Ontario champion in the 800 m. I personally I was more in favor of doing a 50 m swim in the pool which did not require the same training as an 800! Dick continued running throughout his life doing various marathons in various countries and even though I did some myself, never came close to his times.
The hard drive for educational excellence led Dick to Victoria College in U of T. Brother John went to the RCMP and a few years later I joined the Royal Canadian Navy. Richards’s talent for languages stood him in good stead with External Affairs Department of Canada and having passed the exams he was recruited to be a foreign officer.
Not having the academic inclination to study and not suitable to take orders from the Canadian Navy people, I decided upon my release from the Navy to go back to university and study political science and economics but never catching up to the standard and leadership that my brother had set down much earlier. Another notch in his belt
My brother had a successful career and even overcame his ‘dance with the devil rum’ and raised a great daughter and 2 wonderful grandchildren.
In closing our family and journeys in Canada and abroad were typical of the post war era and mine was made easier by having a very good example to follow - you my older brother. Rest in peace. See you at the next competition!
Aart
