On Friday, we attended the funeral of my father-in-law's best friend, P. P passed away peacefully on Tuesday, with his family by his side in his 89th year. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, five children and eleven grandchildren.
P lived a long life, often filled with the kind of adventure most of us only watch on TV. He was born in a sauna (really!) on the island of Hiiumaa in the tiny country of Estonia, the 3rd of 10 children.
When the Soviet army first invaded in 1941, P was conscripted, and put on a train towards Moscow, possibly beyond, with one of his brothers. Rather than completing this trip, P and one of his friends jumped from the train into a field, hiding there until it was safe to move. They walked back over a few days, mostly through forests to keep cover. They found a small rowboat, and made their way back to the island. Soviet soldiers were bathing on the beach, fired on them and gave chase. Again, P and his friend ran into the woods for cover, and went their separate ways for safety. For months, P lived as a fugitive in his own home, with frequent treks into the woods when soldiers were spotted in the area.
When the German soldiers pushed the Soviets out, there was a short period of safety, but soon they also conscripting P. However, P fell ill with jaundice and was unable to serve. A couple of years later, when the Soviet army returned, P was able to flee to Sweden in a small boat with some 30 others. His brother remained on the train to Russia - they never saw each other again! And it would be many decades before P would see his home again.
P met his wife, L, in Sweden and were soon married. From Sweden, P & L came to Canada on their honeymoon trip on board a refugee ship. After a short time as a farm labourers in BC, where they slept under the stars the night of their arrival, P & L made their way to Toronto, with a couple of small suitcases of clothes and $2. P soon found work as a carpenter, working most of his life in commercial buildings. He taught himself how to play several musical instruments. He even took electronics courses relatively late in life, and repaired TV's and such as a hobby. The family lived in a semi detached house in east Toronto for many years, until P built the family's current home with his own hands.
P was a creative, out-of-the-box thinker who left a strong legacy. He was a man of faith, one of the founding members of the Estonian Baptist Church of Toronto, where many years later I was privileged to serve with him on the Board. I was also the beneficiary of his musical talents, playing clarinet and tuba in a unique vocal/instrumental choir that he assembled and conducted there. His creative carpentry skills helped build the TD Centre, the Eaton Centre, and the CN Tower. Perhaps the most unique legacy he left his family was carving their names into the very top of the tower - not many of us will be able to top that!
Psalm 116:15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.
2 comments:
Enn,
He was a dear friend of my father-in-law, too. Mr. P was a good man, and quite a character. I was sorry that we were in Chicago when we heard of his passing and could not have been with his family @ the funeral to celebrate his life.
this is a beautiful tribute, enn, even for someone who didn't know him. thanx for writing it.
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