What a perfect place for me to be during this hard week of loss and memories … a beautiful park just a few blocks from my hotel, those incredibly beautiful lakes in and around the Banff National Forest, reconnecting and meeting in person some of the widowed friends I met online back in 2020 during the Covid Zooms, and being surrounded by 227 beautiful widowed people at the first Camp Widow in Calgary.
After I finished writing last week’s blog post on Monday, I headed out to do a bit of walking. I asked the front desk which way I needed to go to get to the river and I not only found the river … but also the amazing Prince’s Island Park. So unexpected to find such a beautiful park so close to all of the downtown high-rise buildings.
Tuesday was Vern’s day. Visiting the spectacular beauty of Emerald Lake, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake and Johnston Canyon on Vern’s death anniversary was exactly what I needed. I There was plenty of time to just absorb all of the beauty and send it up to him. It was a long day … over 20,000 steps! …but so very worth it.
Wednesday brought a lovely reunion with one of the Canadian widows I had connected with at a previous Camp and on the Covid Zooms and again when she visited Las Vegas. We did a walking tour of Calgary and had dinner with 20+ other widows at the restaurant atop the Calgary Tower. Only 15K steps that day.
Thursday and Friday were Camp days, so not as much walking, but 8K steps each day is far more than normal for me. Slept in on Thursday and did some volunteering, and my zoom group pals and I had dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant (I loved the name of the restaurant – You & Me – as Vern said those words to me while in hospice). Friday was busy with the keynote, workshops and reception. I attended a couple of really good workshops and I’ll be checking out those presenters’ websites for additional information.
Then came Saturday. Jim’s day. No alarm, but I woke up precisely at 6am. The exact time I woke up one year ago to find Jim had died. Emotions were close to the surface and I had some public tears. Attended a tai chi workshop that I really enjoyed. The presenter has YouTube videos so I can watch those to get better at it. I attended one other workshop but left shortly after it started. Decided I needed to take a walk in the park again. But it sure was different from Monday’s walk. Icy wind, 49 degrees and sprinkles. Walked a block and decided to go back to my room to grab a sweatshirt, jacket and scarf. 12K steps – whew! Joined my group for the banquet and we took some photos to remember this time together.
Sunday closed things up with breakfast and good-byes. A friend approached me and said she had been sitting at a table with someone who wanted to meet me. Jane had participated in those early 2020 zoom sessions and her words of thanks nearly made my heart explode with gratitude.
All of that walking ended up causing this ol’ gal to have to take a break. My knees had been letting me know they weren’t real happy with this new activity of mine and Saturday night my right leg joined the choir. Ouch! So I’m hobbling around and decided not to participate in Sunday’s adventures. I’m sure I’ll regret missing the Devonian Gardens and National Music Centre but I just felt it best to give my leg a rest. I was able to join the group for dinner as we said our good-byes.
Reconnecting with the widowed people I’ve met throughout my years of volunteering and attending those many Camp Widows was such a beautiful blessing. And meeting in person those who had participated in that very first informal zoom group I started back in 2020 (without permission – oops) was simply amazing. We formed such a bond during that time of isolation and my heart was filled to overflowing with the comments shared with me after all these years. What a perfect week filled with love and beauty and friendships … and I felt my two special men with me the whole time.
Find your community … it can make such a huge difference.
