DAD’S EULOGY

 The Archangel Michael was a protector against the forces of evil and like his namesake, Dad had that same quality. At the Wedderburn Caravan Park’ which Dad ruled with an iron rod, there were a fair few ‘people of ill repute’ who tried to come into the park but Dad was onto them and would tell them there were no vacancies or when a hoodlum would come tearing in, ignoring the speed limit, Dad would utter a curse and stand ready to defend his territory.

I remember once when I had just ditched a loser boyfriend prior to a fairly major event, Dad flew up here from Victoria to spend a few days with me; he wanted to protect me. And when I set off on my trip backpacking alone around Australia, Dad who was a man of few words and little emotion, on the eve of my departure simply handed me a screwdriver and said “here, take this.” Fortunately, I never had to use that screwdriver but, on a few occasions, I slept with it under my pillow, just in case! Dad was very caring in his own special way.

Caring about farm animals however was a slightly different matter. Dad’s been known to terrorise the odd sheep behaving badly; our various cats lived in a constant state of fear and the dogs, well if they weren’t performing they were quickly despatched with a lead breakfast! Poor Tammy.

In the last 2 weeks our family has received a lot of support from family and friends which has been greatly appreciated. Ben Patrick, my first cousin and, as Mum now refers to him, her ‘other son’, has been a constant comforting presence in that last rough, busy week, he’s been a fantastic help, turning up with bottles of wine, meals, he’s spent a lot of time putting together the slide show presentation which you will see later; Ben’s been there every step of the way and definitely deserves ‘Cousin of the Year’.

Rebecca and Kate have done a wonderful job helping Mum nurse Dad around the clock for the last week of his life. And Mum, she’s incredible, always strong and cheery, she’s our true shining angel. Mum’s devotion to Dad is just beautiful and inspirational. She hardly left the hospital when Dad had his initial bowel operation in December 05 and she barely left Dad’s side in his last week.

It’s been a devastating yet special time for our family; everyone has come together and done their bit; we’ve had a lot of laughs, there’s been some tears, there’s been a helluva lot of red wine drunk!

When it became evident that Dad wasn’t going to be with us much longer, I started to think “gee, I wish I’d been to more funerals” so the cousins and the aunts and uncles could return the favour, so to speak. Because that’s what makes me feel better, being surrounded by family and friends, and we’ve had many good times over the years.

Dad always said he preferred a funeral to a wedding so let’s enjoy the day and see Dad off in a befitting manner.

 

We’ve always loved you Dad an always will.