“Ian Morrison Robertson, 1936-2023”
My Dad, Ian Morrison Robertson, died on February 17, 2023. He was 86 years old.
Here he is with me in the Whisky Cave at the Marine hotel at Royal Troon golf course, celebrating his 80th birthday.
And here’s Dad when we visited him in hospital before Heather’s wedding, 6 months ago.
My sister, Elspeth, did a lovely job of collecting some thoughts for input to the eulogy for Dad:
“Messages from the many cards we have received have shared a common theme, describing Dad as a true gentleman and a gentle gentleman. He was described as a dear and lovely friend and a family man at heart. There were many references to his sense of humour, exchanging merry banter, and the many laughs on church holidays. They described his “unfailingly thoughtful and measured opinions in discussions at session meetings”, his valued comments, and that he will be a loss to the church and community.
Personal reflections
I have many memories of wonderful holidays together as a family, firstly in our touring caravan, then at Glenluce, in our static caravan. We would travel there most weekends, and spend much of the summer there. Like Keith, I remember listening to music in the car, James Last, Herb Alpert, Tom Jones ( in particular “What’s New Pussycat?” and “Delilah”) and Simon and Garfunkel, remembering Dad singing along to “Cecilia”. It was always the highlight of the journey if you got to stop for ice cream at Ballantrae, or a fish supper at Girvan.
I have fond memories of dancing around the living room standing on Dad’s toes. I took this very seriously and truly believed I was learning to ballroom dance.
When teenage life made us too busy for the caravan, our holidays moved to France, and I have many wonderful memories. Dad , despite his limited knowledge of French, would read a paper every day, and had learned to order all our complicated ice cream flavours and combinations, but caused hilarity when he managed to order everything perfectly in French, but ended with please.
Dad had a lovely sense of humour. I remember being on a school trip to France. Dad spotted metal balls on the electricity cables and told us that this was how the French transported their cheese. He also told us to look carefully and we would be able to see the hunchback of Notre Dame. I couldn’t understand why I was the only one laughing, but he had sounded so convincing that everyone else believed him. We laughed about it later. I might add that he did this shortly after calling me “toots” in front of all my classmates!
Dad loved nature, and whenever we were walking, it would turn into a nature walk with him pointing out plants, trees, birds and animals. He loved to share his passion and continued this tradition with his grandchildren. He loved gardening and would spend hours pottering with his plants. Heather and Struan enjoyed “helping “ him with this when they were young, and I have a lovely memory of him pushing them around in the wheelbarrow.
His love of nature extended to water, so much so that he always connected with it, but not in the way he intended. He loved clambering over rocks, but was always so busy looking in rock pools that he invariably fell in.
Dad’s hobbies included completing jigsaws and crosswords. He had endless patience and was a mine of knowledge, although we used to tease him that he was full of useless information. This came in useful for quizzes, and there was always a fight over who would have him in their team for Trivial
Pursuit. He loved flower arranging and a favourite was a display he created of “The Burning Bush” which sat in front of the organ at the flower festival. His love of art has filled our homes with beautiful paintings which we will cherish forever. I only wish he had passed on some of his artistic talent!
Dad would do anything for any of us. He was always there for all events. He ferried me all over, and never missed a concert, dancing display, prizegiving, competition or BB display . This applied equally to Keith and I , and also Heather and Struan.
When Heather was born, we were very grateful for “Grandpa’s magic arms” as he had the perfect knack of calming her and getting her to sleep.
He enjoyed precious time spent looking after Heather and Struan, hearing all their stories and playing with them. Part of Struan’s weekly routine right up until he left school was watching Scooby Doo and Roadrunner with Grandpa.
Keith’s boys used to call Mum and Dad “Grannyampa”, which was lovely, because it highlighted that they were inseparable, and loved to do things together. They saw them as a combined entity.
Dad really enjoyed going on church holidays. There were many tales of the happy times he spent with friends.
I have always known how proud Dad was of me, and felt his unconditional love, but he was never overly generous with his compliments. If asked his opinion on, for example, outfits, he would often reply that they were “fine”. It amused me that when I moved to Aberdeenshire, I discovered that fine has a very different meaning, and actually means very good or special. I laughed with Dad that , of course, he knew that all along and that was always what he meant.”
Such great memories and wonderful writing. This is a link to some of Dad’s favourite songs:
Here are some of my thoughts that I shared for potential inclusion in the euglogy:
Artist
Dad was a great artist and enjoyed his regular art classes – I think maybe just as much for the story telling as the art activities. I remember being amazed at the knights in armour he would draw for me as a young kid. A painting Dad did of a Tuscan scene for my 50th birthday has pride of place as the first thing you see on entering my home.
Music
Dad loved all kinds of music. A fond memory is driving around in the Renault 16, listening to Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on the 8-track player. I think I could still tell you where the “clunk” of the track changing happens on those songs. Some of his favourites were Abba, James Last, Neil Diamond and Tom Jones.
Dad invested countless hours ferrying me to band practice and patiently listening to many brass bands playing the same piece at competitions – and those were not popular hits type pieces.
Story Telling
One of Dad’s big enjoyments was telling a good story. “Jackanories” is what we called the detailed recaps of Dad’s day at school we listened to at the dinner table each night. Lots of detailed dialogue and plot lines. Dad did love to read and I enjoyed perusing his library for a good read during my visits and on flights home.
Boy Scouts
Dad put together and taught a course leading to the Conservation badge for my Boy Scout Troop. His teaching and story telling skills really made this a fun and popular badge.
Trying New Things
At the age of 80, Dad tried snorkeling for the first time at our wedding in Cozumel. He thoroughly enjoyed the plethora of colourful fish in the reef.
Here are some pictures of the many flower arrangements and cards that were delivered to Merrick View. You can see how many people in the community loved my Dad.
Here’s a plant that I received from work colleagues. His name is Morrison, and he’s a Bromeliad (according to Google lens). It looks like a species about which Dad would have had a lot to share.
A windchime that I received as a sympathy gift included this poem:
“A Letter from Heaven”, by Ruth Ann Mahaffey
“To my dearest family,
Some things I’d like to say
But first of all to let you know
That I arrived OK.
I’m writing this from heaven
Where I dwell with God above
Where there’s no more tears or sadness
There is just eternal love
Please do not be unhappy
Just because I am out of sight
Remember that I’m with you
Each morning, noon, and night
That day I had to leave you
When my life on Earth was through
God picked me up and hugged me
And He said I welcome you.
It’s good to have you back again
You were missed while you were gone
As for your dearest family…
They’ll be here later on.
I need you here so badly
As part of my big plan
There’s so much that we have to do
To help the mortal man.
Then God gave me a list of things
He wished for me to do,
And foremost on that list of mine
Is to watch and care for you.
And I will be beside you
Every day and week and year
And when your sad I’m standing there
To wipe away the tear.
And when you lie in bed at night
The day’s chores put to flight
God and I are closer to you
In the middle of the night.
When you think of my life on Earth
And all those loving years
Because you’re only human
They are bound to bring you tears.
But do not be afraid to cry
It does relieve the pain
Remember there would be no flowers
Unless there was some rain.
I wish that I could tell you
Of all that God has planned,
But if I were to tell you
You wouldn’t understand.
There is one thing is for certain
Though my life on Earth is o’re,
I’m closer to you now
Than I ever was before.
And to my very many friends,
Trust God knows what is best
I’m still not far away from you
I’m just beyond the crest.
There are many rocky roads ahead of you
And many hills to climb,
But together we can do it
Taking one day at a time.
It was always my philosophy
And I’d like it for you too
That as you give unto the world,
So the world will give to you.
If you can help somebody
Who’s in sorrow or in pain,
Then you can say to God at night
My day was not in vain.
And now I am contented
That my life, it was worthwhile,
Knowing as I passed along the way
I made somebody smile.
So if you meet somebody
Who is down and feeling low,
Just lend a hand to pick him up
As on your way you go.
When you are walking down the street,
And you’ve got me on your mind
I’m walking in your footsteps
Only half a step behind.
And you feel that gentle breeze
Or the wind upon your face
That’s me giving you a great big hug
Or just a soft embrace.
And when It’s time for you to go
From that body to be free
Remember that you’re not going,
You are coming here to me.”
I’ll finish with a few of my favourite photos that sit on my desk:
I miss you Dad!