There was always a special place in my heart for Pierre Elliott Trudeau that I even went as far as to name one of our cats Elliott. It all happened back in the late 70’s when my mother, her friend and I were at the Chateau Laurier having lunch when who walks in but the Prime Minister with a white haired gentleman accompanying him. The friend that was joining us for lunch was a reporter in Aylmer Quebec and knew both the Prime Minister and the distinguished looking gentleman. So of course without question our reporter friend was going to make our acquaintance with the Prime Minister.
Well, we did just that. We got to meet the courageous and fearless politician who once sat on a podium amidst projecting bottles and rocks thrown by Quebec Separatist rioters and never flinched an inch. To Canadians a significant moment had just occurred that distinguished through him what Canada was all about; a strong and proud country .Trudeau was a symbol of courage and strength an ideal of what all Canadians had wanted in a leader and he certainly delivered it in style. From that moment on he dominated a nation with passion and love. Canadians learned to be proud once more and to stand for what was important to them...a united land. I was totally mesmerized and enamored with our Prime Minister and so were many women and men of the time. Now I was going to meet this amazing man.
Our friend went over and asked the two men if they would mind sparing a moment of their lunch so that we could meet the Prime Minister and they readily agreed. All that I can remember of the event was Trudeau’s gorgeous piercing blue eyes and how graceful and the perspicacity he contained; especially for my mother. He actually spent the most part of the conversation talking with my mom and then surprised us both when he discovered our nationality and began to speak quite eloquently in Italian to my mom and remarked; “You’re such a lovely Italian lady!” My mother was of course utterly enthralled by his unexpected declaration. He spent a great deal of his time conversing with two completely ordinary individuals but made us feel like we were the most engaging interesting people that he had just encountered that day. He knew exactly how to reach inside ones character and to be so incredibly attuned to his immediate surroundings. This implausible event turned out to be quite monumental in my life. I was a very young girl then who was smitten by her charmer…The Prime Minister of Canada. After all these years gone by, as I'm writing this entry I still get the very same goose bumps that I had felt that very day when I had first met the honorable Pierre Elliott Trudeau. I believe he haunts me still for he was then and is now my very own charismatic charmer of all time in Canadian history. And in the end I would agree with Justin Trudeau’s ending words of his eulogy “he has kept his promises and earned his sleep”. Until we meet again; thank you, yore honorable Pierre Elliott Trudeau for the passion, devotion and deep commitment that you gave our country which we call Canada. ~ANNABELLE ~
No comments:
Post a Comment