Page 19 - FEB2022

February 2022
NEWFOUNDLAKELIFE.COM
Page 19
Community
journey died.
Bert had two more thoughts
he seemed eager to share. First, in response to repeated sugges- tions that he move his bed down- stairs for safety’s sake, he made it clear that he needed to climb the spiral staircase to maintain strength in his legs. He under- scored his belief that climbing had always been and continued to be “a good thing” for him with some passion. Lastly, Bert wanted me to be mindful that the most important lesson for Billy and Jimmy as they learned to be watchful of the earth and the skies were to keep their lenses clean or, as Bert said, “There’s nothing worse than a lens that’s smudged.”
of nature and photographs of his family, some of Bert’s pho- tographs are reminders of his volunteer work in the Newfound area, such as his work with the Alexandria Fire Department and the hours spent building props and designing souvenir medallions for Santa’s Village at Bristol’s Tapply Thompson Community Center.
During the last years of our 100-year-old man’s life, Bert has faced the challenges that face all who have earned the appellation of “venerable.” However, he re- mains active in the body and es- pecially in the mind. During one of this writer’s interviews with Bert, he reflected thoughtfully and had a few words of advice to share. However, before I recall that, let’s return to the two boys who climbed the spiral staircase. Being the boys’ grandfather, I was concerned when they re- mained upstairs for some time, so I went up to take a look.
Billy and Jimmy were sitting on the floor of Bert’s bedroom. The sun was shining through the bedroom’s large windows through which, beyond the sec- ond-floor deck, one could see
the top of Mount Cardigan. The boys were seated below a large, intricately detailed model of a sailing ship, a “salt banker” schooner, the type of ship that had fished the Atlan- tic in the days of Bert’s youth. In an attic, Bert had discovered the four-foot-long model, bro- ken and disassembled. He had spent three years rebuilding this poignant reminder of his child- hood days by the LaHave River when the schooners would dock and spread the catch of salted fish on flakes to dry. However, Billy and Jimmy’s attention was not focused on the ship model. They were huddled around a telescope, occasionally handling the tube and the altitude control handle. I interrupted
their somewhat presumptu- ous activity and directed them to come back downstairs with me.
We visited with Bert for a few more minutes. When I told him what the boys had been up to, he smiled broadly but did not comment. The boys shared handshakes with Bert, and we departed. A week later, I re- turned to interview Bert for this story. Before we got to that, he had something to say.
“Bill, I have an important job for you. I want you to give the boys the telescope and teach them how to use it.”
I’ve forgotten my response, but I know I was deeply touched by a gesture that was more than the conveyance of an astronom- ical instrument and the assign-
ment of a “job.”
Then, Bert shared some “last
thoughts” for my story. Bert’s sister, Verne, was present. She frequently visited out of concern for her older brother. She braved trips from Maine even in win- ter snowstorms to be with him. Verne usually joined in our con- versations, but this afternoon she was quiet as though deferring to Bert’s last thoughts.
Bert told me he had been lucky to have lived so long, for longevity had made it possible to help Ruth in the last years of her debilitating illness. He expressed sincere thanks for being healthy enough to help her through her decline. They had been married for 73 years when, a few months ago, the companion in his life’s
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