"When I'm an old woman...

…I shall wear purple.” I love the poem that begins this way.

Not that I really think of myself as old. Most days I feel like I’m 25, even if laugh lines and persnickety bones (AND words like persnickety) “tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth”.

But on my shoe rack, alongside my lime green, pointy-toe cowboy boots (torture!) and cotton candy pink go-go boots (a steal from Goodwill at 3.99!) are my favourite shoes. Guess what colour they are!

I bought them a few months back, after returning home from the memorial service of a man who left us way too soon. I know. That’s not your everyday reason for buying shoes. But this man wasn’t your everyday kind of guy.

Richard's eyes held that sort of twinkle that made you wonder what he knew that you didn’t....and made you wish you did! And I’m sure his hair used to be some other shade than silver, but I can’t think of any that would have suited him better. He was a living legend in the film community here (Catwalk, Bridge Productions, Silver Hammer Studios). If you’ve ever seen one of those “Save the Children” infomercials with Sally Struthers, you’ve seen some of his favourite work. He was passionate about the cause.

Those who knew Richard would tell you he was the very definition of the word “passion”. There should be a picture of him beside the word in every dictionary, and if there were, it would be in colour. Because Richard was the very definition of "colour" too. Richard surrounded himself with colour -- colours so bright and splashy they’d make the rainbow seem drab --like the shirts he loved to wear. And the purple tennis shoes he wore, even to formal occasions.

Richard lived his life with passion, in technicolor. And his memorial service was a perfect tribute to the wild ride he enjoyed for 57 years. From the minister who threw open her somber robes to reveal a bold & brilliant, geometric print dress (the sanctuary exploded in approving applause) to the eulogies that drew hearty guffaws from the congregation, it was the most unique experience I have ever had at such a gathering. Rather than sadness and solemnity, people left the church with a feeling of happiness and renewal. No heavy hearts that day. Which is exactly what Richard would have wanted.

I didn’t know Richard well, but after that service I wished I’d known him better. I could have learned some valuable lessons from him. Folks like him don’t come around everyday. As it was, I learned a lot from that memorial service. It had a profound effect on me.

So the first thing I did after coming home was to search the Internet for a pair of purple tennis shoes. Richard loved to wear them. Now I do too. Because every time I lace them up, I’m reminded to live life with joy, to fill my day (and the days of others) with laughter, and to find magic in every moment that I possibly can.

I’m not yet an old woman, but I won’t wait to wear purple…tennis shoes.