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August 2006 A deathMy sister died in July. My Sister Mary-Jean Watson B.S.PEd McGill 1955 My mother told my sisters that I was coming at Christmas. Mary-Jean was 15 and Joanie was 12. They both thought the concept of a pregnant mother at their age was a little much. My mother was ill after my birth and my sisters had to pitch in with baby care. My earliest memory with Mary-Jean was going to the Women's Residence at McGill to see the Santa Claus Parade. This was the ultimate place to see the parade, inside and warm. Another time M-J took me to the Redpath Museum. I found the Redpath really interesting, but I stood on the steps with my sister hand and decided that I was going to McGill. During my Archives course in Library School at McGill, I ended up with the McCord Archives. My first publication was "A Preliminary Description of Papers relating to Redpath Museum Accession no 1476, 1880-1960" Included in that documentation was the guest book from 1956 -58 which I signed. Mary-Jean's studies at McGill gave me the impetus to continue straight through high school to college and university in spite of incredible obstacles from the illness of my mother and death of my father when I was 16. She and Hugh also helped me financially while I was there. Through the efforts of her godfather Harold Greaves DDS for whom she worked chair side when she was not going to school, a handsome young English man named Hugh with a mouthful of bad teeth was given appointments until he realized the love of his life was standing beside him at the dentist, and asked her out on a date. She graduated in June 1955 and 5 days later married Hugh. The wedding clothing was designed by Juno Doro, photography by Max and June Sauer, Music by Dr. Kelsey Jones, married by the Padre Charles Coombes. They were married in the tiny Anglican church in St. Agathe. The reception was at our summer house on Lake Manitou, and they went away by boat. I was a flower girl in a long periwinkle blue silk dress. Kelsey Jones promised the "Entrance of the Gladiators" Hugh was standing at the front of the church waiting and waiting, and Kelsey produced "Entrance of the Gladiators" a la Bach, a la Beethoven. At age 5, I recognized it as the clown's music from the Circus. Hugh had a lovely time keeping his face straight. Eventually the Bride arrived and the wedding of the year got done. They moved to an apartment in the Town of Mount Royal. They both worked. Hugh took the train to Montreal Engineering 6 days a week, and Mary-Jean taught gym. She taught gym for the Montreal Protestant School board...and was my gym teacher for a while. I had to call her Mrs. Watson while my friend Lou enjoyed calling her Mary-Jean. She also taught at the Miss Edgars and Cramps School .
She incorporated the Orff method of music into her life, and also my life. http://classicsforkids.com/teachers/training/orff101.asp I cannot remember when I was unaware of music, or the Orff method which I also used to teach over 1000 kids over 10 years to read music and play as a parent volunteer. My children were exposed to Orff even before they were born. When Mary-Jean had grandchildren, she bought them a glockenspiel and continued sharing music with any children that were around. Mary-Jean played the piano technically better than I did. The Appassionata by Beethoven was hers. The moonlight easy movement was mine. She ended up with my dad's Knabe baby grand. I had dad's apartment piano which had real limitations as a piano, too slow, too quiet. I ended up with a terrific digital piano studio. All the time that Mary-Jean was schussing on ski hills, I was learning Bach's toccata and fugue in d minor, and developing my own signature to music, and simply by hours spent at the piano I moved ahead as the best. It was not a competition, we shared music as fundamental strong strengths. Swimming and lifesaving. She was the only examiner for the Royal Life Saving Society. I often went with her to many different camps in Quebec but could not get my own Bronze. Up north at Lake Manitou we swam a lot, every day twice a day provided there was no ice in the water. The family challenge was to soar on the water skis perfectly to the dock without sinking. I remember fussing while she water-skied while pregnant. On Sundays Mary-Jean and Hugh went sailing and I looked after the kids. I love those kids, my first babies. Mary-Jean's home was also my sanctuary when my mother was on a tear. She never said "Oh you again. Perhaps you could play in traffic for a while." She taught me how to change diapers, and let me babysit. It was a good symbiotic relationship. Our dad died when I was in high school. At the same time my sister and her husband were moving to Toronto. I finished up high school, then moved up to my sister's house. She adopted me for the next year while I flailed in grade 13. Then she went to Brazil with her husband and family, learning to speak Portuguese, and living in Curitiba. Her kids went to school and learned Portuguese. When they came back to Montreal, all the girls talked more Portuguese than English. Mary-Jean went back to teaching gym at the sacred heart school on Atwater. In this position she was able to influence many young catholic girls to have respect for their bodies with sports and fitness . She did not have a gym. http://www.sacredheart.qc.ca/athletics/index.php This program is my sister's legacy to the school and all the young women she influenced. She quailified as a CSI and taught skiing through the Rob Roy Ski School from Montreal to the Laurentians. and put her kids on skis as soon as they could toddle. I have never understood why anyone would want to be cold and whipping down a hill of snow, their own safety completely their own responsibility. One of my friends was a ski student of Mary-Jean's and said she really taught you to love it with her own joy. When she moved up to Toronto, she started a long association with Hockley ski Hill. I lived due west of Hockley, so always phoned her at our first snow . My sister's last words to me were "I love you."
PAM Candlish August 12, 2006
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