Uncle Randy

So this has been a tough weekend for me, because all my family is all up in the mountains at a memorial for my uncle, and I was unable to attend. So, I wanted to do my own tribute on here.

He was the kind of guy that, when he walked into the room, you knew he was there. He was loud and boisterous... but in the best possible way. Right after he passed away... (and actually even still,) whenever my family gets together it is so noticeable that he isn't there. Its really weird to have everyone together, but be missing that booming voice.
Whenever you walked into his house he was very quick to offer up something to eat. Didn't matter if it was 10am or 10pm- he was ready to whip up a culinary delight. And no matter what it was- it was gonna have hot sauce or tobasco.
My uncle was a really hard worker, and he definitely instilled that upon me. When I was going into grade seven I really wanted this pair of jeans. I was begging my mom to buy them for me and he overheard. So he offers me a "job" of sorts. He worked and lived at CSL Ford in Cardston, and in the back lot they had all the old vehicles that got towed in. Well, in a lot of those vehicles there were also pop bottles. He offered me free run of the lot and said that I could pay off those jeans (and some!!) with the amount of bottles back there. So, one Saturday I went back there and spent like five hours in the blazing sun, crawling from car to car collecting those darn bottles. He was right though, not only did I get enough for my jeans, (and some!) but I also came away with a valuable lesson. And don't think he wasn't out there helping me either!

I was always very close to him and my aunt, and they were always there for me. Whether it was giving me place to stay... (and I have to say, sleeping on thier spare bed... which happened to be a waterbed... always took me back to the early 90s, so that in itself was a good time!), or going above and beyond when I got into tough spots in life, I always knew I could count on them. He was one of the most dependable people you could ever meet. Everyone in the family knew we could always rely on him for anything. If you asked him to do something, it was going to be done. No questions asked.
It was a relief to me when he and Ben took to each other so well. Not that I worried, but the other thing about Rand was that he was really direct. He told it how he saw it, and some people don't handle that well. Truth be told, its one of the things I loved most about him. Luckily for me and my hubby, the two of them really meshed well, and I have to say one of the things I miss most about him is, when we walk into a family gathering, there is no longer someone there shouting, "Hey Benjie!" Because, I guarantee, there is no one else in the world who will ever get away with calling him that.
So, I may not have been able to attend with the rest of my family this weekend, but he is in my thoughts and I really hope I, in some small way, did him some justice by this post.
I miss you every day Uncle Rand.