Regarding the post below, it turns out that I know too many Gordons. The Gordon I had in mind was Gordon Neilson, not Wilson, but the ol' memory ain't what it used to be. I've decided just to leave it as it is, as I'm sure I knew Gordon Wilson too (though I can't put a face to the name), and it's a shame he's died. Anyway, remember that the following reminiscence applies to G. Neilson and not G. Wilson.
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Reading through an old copy of the local newspaper from July, I spotted a name in the obituaries column that drew me up short. It was for a fellow called Gordon Wilson, who, if it's the same chap, was someone who I knew slightly from primary and secondary school. He was a friend of a friend, and, over the years, we'd nod to each other, sometimes exchanging pleasantries as we passed. The last time I recall actually speaking with him was around 15 or 20 years ago (believe me, at my age, that seems like no time at all), but I'm sure we at least nodded to one another in our local shopping centre within the last 2 or 3 years or so. There's also bound to be a more recent odd occasion or two when I saw him at a distance, but never got the chance to acknowledge him (and vice versa). I always found it odd that my friend had a pal with a name very similar to my own, with only the first 3 letters of our surnames being different. I can't help but wonder if Gordon ever thought the same.
Regular readers may remember me recounting this tale, wherein the mutual friend mentioned above, on the night his mother died, made his way to a pal's house (I accompanied him for part of the way) to inform him of the fact. Gordon was the very pal, and though I didn't know him particularly well, he was a familiar face from childhood and it's sad to learn of his demise. Tomorrow I'll make a 'phone call just to make sure it is him, but, alas, it seems more than likely. Ah, where does the time go? As I said, I didn't know Gordon that well, but I still find myself saddened to learn of his passing. Maybe that's a selfish reaction, caused more by the fact that his death marks the disappearance of a small (but significant) part of my own life rather than the expiry of his, but it still saddens me that I'll never get the chance to nod or speak to him again. Not in this life anyway.
Condolences to his family and friends. And acquaintances, of which I was one.
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(Given the update at the top of the post, it looks like I'll probably get the chance to nod or/and speak to him again sooner than I thought.)
4 comments:
Kid, you're going to feel a bit silly if it's the wrong Gordon Wilson - after you've written this post an' all.
Nah, if it turns out not to be him, I'll feel relieved, CJ.
You're correct about how fast time goes by. In my line of work, we've worked on many roads two or three times during my tenure and it's hard to believe sometimes that it's been 10-15 years since we did any work. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine lost his mother and the funeral was held in our hometown. We had not seen each other in 30 years and we both remarked that it seemed like just a few months ago when we last met, even though we both looked a LOT different this time around.
I had a similar experience close to 25 years ago (which in itself amazes me because it only feels like 6 or 7), where I ran into an old classmate for the first time in what seemed like months. I was flabbergasted when he told me that he'd emigrated to Australia (or Canada) 2 years before and was only back home on holiday to visit his folks. The fact that he'd been living an entirely different life while I subconsciously imagined him to be still trotting around our old environs was hard for me to get my head around. Time flies sure enough.
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