Tuesday, July 4, 2023
My most vivid and earliest memories of Uncle Terry were Christmas holidays spent in the valley. Every year we would travel to Fort Qu’Appelle for the winter break to visit Grandma and Grandpa Trithardt. Terry would join us for a few days of celebration.
During this time, Uncle Terry would make sure to pull out the fastest snowmobile from the shed and securely tie the metal Coca-Cola sign to the back that they used as a giant sled. Onto the sled the three of us would pile and he would taxi away slowly as we left the property and travelled down the road to the lake.
As soon as we were out of sight of our parents and grandparents, he would take off with reckless abandon across the frozen lake as fast as he could. His goal – see how long it took to slingshot all three of us off the sled. We hung on for dear life as he bolted across the frozen water and whipped around in a series of deadly twists and turns - us on the sled screaming in joy and fear until we could hold on no longer.
Nobody was spared – not even the youngest. We all experienced the rush of adrenaline as we sailed through the air not knowing when or where we would stop or what condition we would be in at the end. We always came back in one piece, a little bruised and hoarse, but always laughing and wanting more.
Thank you for the memories, Uncle Terry. I sometimes miss the good old days when we threw caution to the wind, crossed boundaries and lived life to the fullest.
We miss you.
Love Angela
