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In Memory of
Roy Alfred Chisholm
My Grandpa Roy was a man of few but carefully chosen words. He would
keep this short.
"It is easy in this world to live after the world's
opinions. It is easy in solitude to live after your own; but the great
man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps, with perfect sweetness,
the independence of solitude". Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote that. It reminds
me of my Grandpa.
I don't think the word integrity ever crossed my Grandpa's
lips. It didn't have to... because he lived it. Roy Chisholm never
lived after the world's opinions - he lived after his own. He lived
true to what he believed was the way a man should craft his life.
And
in crafting his life, there were 4 basic principles.
Spend your days
doing what you love to do...
When Roy Chisholm was 14 years old he realized
that it was time for him to leave school and go to work on the farm.
There was something inside him that knew it. He knew that he wanted
to spend his life working with horses, with livestock, with the land,
and that - as a family - that work could get done together. There was
nothing more that he needed to learn within the walls of a schoolhouse
- so he left. I don’t think he even felt compelled to return and clean
out his desk. You have to be clear about what you want out of life.
And as he would tell you, doing what you love to do has very little
to do with money. There are far more noble pursuits. He said one day,
that all he wanted was three things: a nice barn, a good well, and
freedom from debt. A few dugouts will have to make up for that good
well he was looking for.
Help others find what it is they love to do...
No strings attached. People
should do what they love to do. And the people who love them should
help them to do it, unconditionally. Whatever it is. His greatest love
was his family starting with one special lady. With the discipline
of a sculptor, he crafted his own life, and has encouraged us all to
do the same... crafting lives of purpose and lives that mean something
to us. Maybe that is why his hands were so big. Sometimes when we value
something so much, we put walls around it. Grandpa Roy was never like
that when it came to his family. He silently but powerfully welcomed
people into it - to be a part of it; whether for a weekend, or a Christmas,
or a year or many years.
There are NO excuses for not being a gentleman
or not being good to people...
None. Not a single one. Not jealousy,
not desire, not weakness, not power. We are here on this earth to be
kind and gentle, to work hard, to do good and worthwhile things...
to do those things that are fair. Always, always be a gentleman.
It's important to know what it is time for...
Roy Chisholm always knew
what it was time for. He knew when it was time to prepare, when it
was time to put things in order. He knew when it was time to find a
better way of doing something. He knew when it was time to wait, and
when it was time to drive a deal. He knew when it was time to seed.
Anyone within a hundred mile radius knows that he knew when it was
time to seed. He knew when it was time to harvest. He just knew. He
knew when it was a time to be silent, and he knew when it was a time
to speak.
He knew there was a time for mischief. A suspicious smirk,
and a twinkle in the eye meant that Grandpa had an adventure in store
- we called this "goin' on the loose" - sneaking us out for ice cream
or teaching how to burn doughnuts with his truck. He often spoke of
the good times he had on his road trips to Vancouver, Toronto, and
New York - I'm sure there was some "goin' on the loose" on these trips
as well.
He also understood and accepted that there is a time to leave
this world. We were all amazed at how strong Grandpa was as his time
approached. He took full advantage of his time. He was not scared to
talk about the important things. There were things that needed to be
said to each of us and this was the time.
He knew it was his time -
he accepted it with those big, open hands. And he helped us to accept
that it was indeed ... the right time.
Bradley Chisholm
Maidstone, Saskatchewan, May 2004
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