HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1975-05-14, Page 5Sogar.and: Spice
by Bill Smiley s
Did you ever go around feeling good all'
the time, and have to stop and wonder
why? That's been happening to 'me all
week. I find myself whistling, tossing
cheery salutes to colleagues and generally
feeling as though I'd just won a
lottery.
"Settle down, boy. This,isn't like you," I
admonish me. I am, not normally a
gloom-pot, but neither do I go around .
grinning like an idiots. My wife, early in our
acquaintance, nicknamed Me "Stoneface."
My average expression could probably be
described aS saturnine.
That's why I was a little alarmed to find
myself breaking into broad smiles -this .
week, When I actually found myself being
jolly with the boss, I knew it was "time, to
stop and pull myself together.
"'Look, Bill,' I said to myself,"you have
not been drinking; 'You are riot senile;
nobody has left you a large sum of money.
Pull yourself together. Why are you going
around all hummy inside like a little old
humming-bird?" And then it struck,me. Pokey is in'town.
Pokey, if you came in late; is Nipov Chen.
Sieber, my grand-babby, all rosy, satin
cheeks and huge brown eyes and golden
hair and little white teeth and twenty-two
pounds of hellery of him.
Some of you will. remember an old. song
that went, "Sugar in the morning, sngar in
the evening, sugar at supper time.,."
Those ancient, spavined ladies who were
once the fabulous Andrews Sisters, made it '
a hit. •
Well, that's what it is like when,, my
grandbabbyls around. It's sugar first thing,
in the morning; when I get down for
breakfast. The sugar consists of a little lig
of glee, two big eyes, a tiny white grin, and
two wee arms thrust up, demanding a
pickup, a dozen or se kiSses, a. dandle, a
song, a little soft-shoe shuffle, and ,
anything else that the old man can muster
for the early service,. = ,
Of course, it's all a plot, me
this. The kid has been trained from birth to •
know who has the monekiii the faMily, whom ,
is the softest touch, the biggest sucker., ,.
But reason is washed away by the floods
of emotion when the downy head snuggles
into one's neck, or the tiny finger goes into
the air, pointing it a suri-refiection on the
wall, or the sturdy little body, proceeding
like a bishop on ;roller. skates, marches to
the fire-irons, picks up the poker, and
gravely hands itto one; ignOririg everyone
else in the room. ..
So. The hell with reason. I'm making a
new will. My wife has practically
everything else tied up: but the kid is
getting.my rubber waders and fishing rod,
my golf clubs, my 25 shares of mining
stocks, and the beautiful foot-:stool that his
great-grandfather, on his father's side,
fashioned with his own hands . That's all I
won, but it should set him up pretty well
for life,
And that may be only a start'. We took
him to see his other great-grandad on the
weekend. It was quite a symbolic, touching
meeting, their first.
There was a little more than eighty years
between them, but they were close buddies
from the start.
Great-Grandad was waiting, arms open.
Great-Grandbabby stuck out his arms.
Great-Grandad's eyes got all red around
the edges. Great-Grandbabby grinned. It
was as simple as that.
For the rest of the weekend, there really
wasn't anybody else around of much
account. There was only one clock-of-the-
walk, all 15 months of him. This despite, or
because oftlie fact that' Great-Granclbabby,
had no less than the following heeding his
every wish: one great-great-aunt, two
'great-aunts, two great-uncles, one gran,
one grandad, one mother and four assorted'
cousins, young enough to be .his brothers
and sisters. Talk about a spoil-rotten kid!
To my mind, this is the Way a baby
should be brought up, amidst a veritable
horde of people who love him because, he is
a beautiful baby, and love him even more
because he is theirs r with all that fine blood
This -` still happens among a few
primitiVe tribes, but has 'almost Vanished
from our vaunted western society, where
even grannies and grandadS,let alone the
"greats", are neatly tucked away into
nursing homes where they are lucky to get
a'perfunctory visit once a month from their
own children, let alone ever 'have:a chance
cuddle and kiss the tiny ones, who bear .
their blood and boneS and spirit.
• No child in this world has ever been
`spoiled by 'a surfeit of love. And 'who has
'more time and love to give• than the
"grands" and the "greats"?
At-any rate, as I told my daughter after
she had come in from pacing off her
grandfather's land, "That boy obviously
knows which side his bread is buttered on.
You have trained him well. He has me
hooked. He has his great-grandfather '
hooked: If he plays his cards right, he
might wind, up as, a member of the landed
gentry, as well as the owner of a
15-year-old pair of hip waders."
iii
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iet
It1
111
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OPNOTCH
TOPNOTCH FEEDS LIMITED
Ontario is the first province
Canada. to include an organ donor
section on drivers' licences.
according • to Minister • of
Transportation and. Communica-
tion John Rhodes.
Mr, Rhodes .said the • licence
form has been redesigned to
include a legal declaration which.
allows drivers to donate or allow
transplantatien. of human organs.
after death. . •
"A driver who has. reached the
age of majority (18 in Ontario) has
only to indicate his-wishes, then
sign the declaration," Mr-Rhodes
explained.
.. The Minister. went on to - point
BOB THOMAS
out drivers are not obligated to
sign the organ donor section of
the licence. If a driver doesn't
want to become a donor, lie can
detach and destroy this section of
his licence,
"We sincerely hope that those,
among the more than four Million
licensed Ontario drivers who are
eligible will consider taking
advantage of this declaration,"
Mr. Rhodes said.
'Outside the. Legislature, Mr
Rhodes preserited the first of the •
new licences to Dr. George A.
deVeber, chairman of the Organ
Donor Program; Committee,. the.
Kidney Foundation of Canada,
and director of 'the. Dialysis and
Kidney Transplantation Program
at Toronto . Western. Hospital.
He praised Dr, deVeber who,
played a vital role in, bringing the
idea of a donor declaration to his„.
attention,
The new - licences with the
attached donor declaration will
begin to be distributed this week
as part of the normal renewal'
process based on drivers'. birth
dates at a rate of -about 60,000
licences a week.
Those drivers whose' licences
have recently been renewed and
who would' like to obtain a
separate donor declaration, 'may
contact any driver examination
centre, district or regional office
of the Ministry's Drivers arid
Vehicles Division.
Ontario drivers
orga ns
..
can .donate:,
Son of Mr. and Mrs.CharleS
Thomas of Brussels, Ontario
recently graduated from Centralia You only look College of Agricultural. . '
Technology in the Agricultural ' as 'good
. Business Management program. •
Bob plans to work for Nu-Teck as you feel. , Farms 'Ltd., Brussels.
Hoppe For Values
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Phone 887-6525 Brussels
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Brussels, 887 6011
tHt :'BRUSSELS. Oar; MAY
o the Edithi
.Soaforth students • .
• to* public to
Centennial play .
To the Editor: - - The students and staff of Seaforth Public •
School wish to take' this opportunity to
extend an invitation to the• public to join us
in celebrating Seaferth's 100th birthday by
attending Mir produetion of "Salute to
Seaforth"
- To dispel any misconceptions, "Salute to
Seaforth" is an ORIGINAL stage
production written and produced at
Seaforth Public Scheel as A Centennial
tribute to the Town of Seaforth. The
for the musical history' WAS sparked by the
1985-56 "Crossroads" production Written
by Prof. James Scott of Seafottli,The
CONTENT is . based on Miss Belie
Campbell's boa "History of Seaforth",
"Salute to Seatorth' is Written in nine
scones and a number of intethideS Which
ontlhie a develointientai history of the area:
It begins in the ISJO'S just after the death
of Col. Anthony Van tgitiond and
concludes with the return of Van Egmorid,
Dunlop, and. James Dickson (The first
M.P.) in 1975.
The east totals 125 characters. They are
assisted by two Choirs totalling 90
OUrigaters from Gr, 3 8, and the
'production Wain itiVOIVeS. most of the
School';; students from Gr, 1 to 8.
Where' possible, stage sets have'
incorporated items dating back to the
1800'S. The production nights are Wednesday,
May 21, Thursday 22, and Friday May 23
st 8..60 P.M, Tickets are $1.00 and are
available froth the school.
We want the public to join with its as we
roll back the years td the days of
"dtridebeard Swamp' and the thriving
hamlets of 8giTiotidville and Harptirhey.
Yenta truly,
Publicity. and Tickets Seddon
SeaferthPilblic School