Jeff Walch by Anna Walch

Dad speech final

 

Thank you Marilyn for a warm summary of dads life.

When considering what to share about Dad, I come back to how incredibly easy-going he was. He was happy go lucky and he never sweated the small stuff. He had that near enough is good enough kind of attitude. Not a fan of admin. This is certainly a trait that has been inherited by myself and my brothers. It is a running family joke that all three of us have partnered with meticulous attention-to-detail type A individuals - because we need them to organise our lives for us. When Dad told Mum and I what he wanted for his funeral, he said: No church. No celebrant. Something small with his family and in the backyard would be fine. That was Dad; no fuss and low-key. I then asked him if he wanted to record a video that we could play today for which he responded “Oh yeah, I suppose I should do my part as well.” Unfortunately, and likely due to his optimism and thinking that he had more time, I do not have a video to show you today from Dad. But also, because it’s really just admin! Right?

I remember when I was about 11 or 12 years old. Our Bardon home, which I’m sure all of you are familiar with, like every Queenslander – a clear fire risk – had a smoke alarm that started incessantly beeping every 5 minutes or so. I suspect it was a battery that finally gave up. Now while Dad commendably spent an hour or so on a ladder trying to make it stop… his eventual solution was simply to unscrew it from the roof and just put it into the boot of our Nissan Maxima. Out of sight - out of mind. All this unbeknownst to poor Mum, who for days thought the car was possessed every time she drove it.

Now while I would say Dad is one of the most easy-going people I know, this all gets thrown out of the window when it comes to a competitive sport or game. This passion to win is certainly a Walch trait he shares with his siblings (well at least Kathy and Greg) and he has passed this down to his children. Sunday afternoons growing up were spent on the tennis or basketball court as a family, and even though I was 10 years old I don’t remember ever receiving a single slow serve. Similarly, Dad taught us the intricacies and strategies of chess, backgammon, 500s and pool. He taught me how to perfect the behind -the-back trick shot in pool. When I was little we would show this off at parties and then as I got older, these skills served me well in pubs and clubs in my 20s. I have no doubt that teaching us card and board game strategies at such a young age equipped us with some important life lessons in strategy and problem-solving. It also potentially influenced some of my brothers’ more questionable careers choices in their 20s.

Dad also loved music. He made sure our house was always filled with the iconic sounds of Bob Dylan, Neil young, David Bowie, Talking heads (which mum couldn’t stand), and Leonard Cohen. Music would often be played through his old record player - the best way to listen to any song.  At the end of today’s service you will hear Lou Reeds Perfect Day which was Dad’s favourite song. I have a core memory of listening to this with Dad in the Nissan Maxima, this time without a smoke alarm in the boot, and singing it with him at the top of our lungs.

Now my Dad was not the most emotional guy and I know he struggled to put feelings into words, but I do recall him telling me a number of years ago that he was proud of me because I have so many traits like my mother. While I know Justin will do a big thank you to some key people in his speech, I also need to say that I am so grateful for everything Mum has done to help us care for dad over the last few months. We wouldn’t have been able to keep him at home for as long as we did without her. So thank you mum. You’re a saint. 

Finally, while I have always thought of Dad as more of an introvert and an observer, this was never the case when he was with his family. You simply cannot be an introvert at a Walch function – you’d never get a word in. The way I will always remember Dad, and what I think of as his most authentic self, is sitting in the big armchair on our old deck in Bardon or in that comfortable corner of one of the big lounges on the Strauss House deck, arguing about Howard or Trump, or solving all the problems of modern democracy with a glass of red in hand.

Thank you.