As most of you know, I am a Canucks fan. Even though this year boasts one of the shortest off seasons in Canucks history, it seems like the countdown until the start of next season is taking forever. I follow @VanCanucks on Twitter, and they have a countdown which they display every once in a while. Just when I stopped thinking about hockey, and felt like I was getting on with my life and doing normal things, I saw a post marking the progress of the countdown. “70 days!” and then “60 days!” and this week, “50 days!” Oh my goodness, people! Stop rubbing it IN! I know I have to wait for hockey, but do you really have to make it so obvious how long I have to wait? It is like standing in line at the grocery store with only ONE cashier and having someone track my progress over the PA system: “Only 70 people in front of you…. Only 60 people in front of you…. Only 50 people in front of you!” Okay, Yes, 50 is a whole 20 less than 70, but it is still 50! It’s just too much, and I feel like the countdown until the new season shouldn’t start until it is at least at a point where I can manage waiting with the same amount of people in front of me in line at the grocery store. So, like, one day before maybe?
Alright, crazy ranting aside, this week has been a sad week for Canucks fans and Canadians alike. Just this past Monday, the leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) Jack Layton, passed away. He had been struggling with cancer for quite some time and recently stepped down from his position as a political leader Before doing so, he said that when he came back, things were going to be better than ever. This gave us all hope that he would indeed come back, and fight off his cancer just like he did last time. However, he did not come back. He joined the ever growing list of people who have lost their lives to the disease of cancer.
Another person who joined the world of tragic statistics is our beloved Canuck Rick Rypien. Rick was only 27 years old at the time of his death, but he had gone through many ups and downs in his personal life, having struggled from depression. What I need to mention here is that depression can be just as serious a disease as cancer. A lot of times, people with depression are considered to be something less than the rest of us (and I can’t even loop myself in with “the rest of us” because I too struggle with depression.) It is really not fair for people with depression to be overlooked as a person who is "just faking" sickness. Nor is it acceptable for anyone to avoid seeking treatment for the simple fear that they will be ridiculed. There is NO shame in having depression, just as there is no shame in having cancer. Both are unfortunate diseases from which many people suffer.
Back to Rick Rypien. I know that when people die, a lot of people say things like “He was the best”_____." or "He was my favourite _____,” but Rick Rypien honestly was one of my favourite defensemen of all time. He had grit like no other, and he made hockey exciting to watch, even when our team was losing! It didn’t matter what the score was, if Rick was on the ice, we were winning. Nobody wanted to oppose him, and rightly so. I am proud to have him as a part of the history of my home team. He will be forever remembered.
I have come across various things online paying tribute to both of these amazing men, but these two videos were my favourites.
Click HERE to watch a tribute to Rick Rypien.
Click HERE to watch a tribute to Rick Rypien.
Click HERE to see a clip of Jack Layton the way that the world will remember him.
Thanks for "listening."
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