Toronto in Memories

Hola audience. This post, well it will not be full of sarcastic comments or jokes. It's actually a serious one. So, if any of you are not prepared for something closer to home, go to buzzfeed; they have posts dedicated solely to cute kittens. As for the rest of you, let's go.

This past weekend I visited Toronto, yes, the Toronto Ontario. It is a city that I have experienced before in great joy because I have closer than close family friends living there; two sets in fact. The Gordons, Charles and Kim, live in Oakville which is a suburb of Toronto. The other pair is the Scotts, Mike and Kileen. The latter pair is the one I am going to focus on.

In order: My dad, Kileen and my uncle Paul.
My favorite photo.

Some background info, my father's family the Scales have known the Tuckers (Kileen's maiden name) for many many years. In fact, my grandfather and Mrs. Tucker met in an unusual way; Mrs. Tucker thought some strange man was following her home one day, he took the same turns as her, but he in fact lived in the apartment across the hall. This man was my grandpa. Ever since that day the Tuckers and Scales have been close, especially my dad, uncle Paul, and Kileen; the three of them even have a series of pictures of the three of them taken over the years. Suffice to say, my brother and I grew up visiting Kileen and her husband Mike in Toronto, frequently on our way to Brockville. During my college and adult years we saw Mike and Kileen just about every time we drove up.
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Mike is an amazing person. Not only is he quick with a joke, but he loves to share his passion of baseball with everyone. He coaches an adult league, which two of his sons play in, around the area. He also advocates for a younger league that, "keeps kids on field instead of the streets." He is an all over baseball fanatic and of course, a huge Jays fan. He and Kileen occasionally have tickets to the games and are the kind to go rain or shine in order to cheer for their team. He is also in love with music; fortunately for everyone around him, Mike can sing. On top of all of that, fun fact, Mike knew Rush, yes the band, and had jam sessions with them right before they hit it big. You can't be any cooler than that.

Kileen is her own brand of awesome. She is the definition of loving. If you are lucky enough to be in her heart, she will always show you how much she adores you. Kileen isn't just hugs and smiles though, she's smart as can be as well as a dedicated professor. She teaches various nursing classes and holds administrative positions. I could never be a nurse, not a fan of wet labs, but I admire those who can, especially Kileen. She is a powerful woman that I believe everyone should strive to be like.

The Scotts are wonderful people, seriously the kindest couple anyone could ever meet. Well, now for the serious part.

Our last picture together.
Yes, Pete is giving me Moose antlers.

September 30th, that's a dark day. I received a call from my mother that Mike had died. The truth is still difficult to swallow and will be for a long time. This was the second death for me this year alone; both were during the month of September; both were completely shocking. The other, I'm not comfortable talking about here yet, maybe someday, but not right now. This past weekend I was in Toronto for Mike's memorial service.

The service itself should be recorded in history books; it was held in a movie theater. Mike touched so many people in his life, not a surprise, and all of them who could be there, were. There was a slideshow of hundreds of moments of Mike, beautiful speeches shared, and music, one of the songs he had written himself, was played in his honor.

Mike will always be an important person in my life. He is a friend, a family member, and a mentor; every memory I have of him makes me smile as they should. My thoughts and prayers are with his flesh and blood. My heart is with the love of his life, Kileen. May we all be strong together.

So here's to you Mike; shake up the afterlife as much as possible. Cheers man.