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Welcome to the world of unicorns.

Monday, July 29, 2013

More Inspiring Than All The Fiddlers of the World - One Quiet Gentleman

We recently attended what I suspect is probably the best fiddling camp in Canada in the charming rural town of St-Côme, Quebec. There, on the shores of a beautiful lake, my two boys and I learned tune after tune from some of Quebec's finest fiddlers. We were amazed, we were thrilled, we were awed as we learned some of the catchiest tunes around.

But what was more inspiring than all those amazing fiddlers and the music, was a quiet man named Stephan whose Bernese Mountain Dog sat by patiently waiting to guide his master.
 
"How can he play the fiddle if he's blind?" asked my son.

"Same as us," I replied. "He does it by ear."

But he did more than learn tunes. When we had our mardi gras, he came dressed in a traditional Quebecois period costume - one of the best ones there.
 
"He's kind of a hottie wearing that wig," one of the women commented as he walked by in the distance.

But it wasn't the fiddling, the dog, or the costume that inspired us. It was the man's spirit. Blind since birth, he let nothing stop him. Not only was he a fine violinist, but word had it he was a computer programmer. I didn't find out what his education background was, but I'm sure he's up there.

Then, near the end of the week, I was stunned to discover that he was bilingual, and when I say bilingual, I don't mean he spoke one language well and the other with an accent. I mean he spoke both languages perfectly!

But the biggest surprise of all was the evening we did square dancing and he joined us. He said he had never tried it before. When we crossed sides, and twirled about, he was right there with us. Of course we helped him along, turning him around when he needed turning, leading him in the right direction to make sure he didn't trade squares, but honestly, he was just as good a partner as any!

Stephan, I don't know who brought you up, but my hat's off to them and also to you. No doubt you inherited your spirit from your folks and that's what makes you the huge success you are today. But do you even have any idea what an inspiration you are to the people around you? To my sons? To me? You are truly an amazing human being.


11 comments:

  1. He sounds like a wonderful man, Suzanne! Thanks for sharing this inspirational story. :)

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  2. Thanks, Katie. He's a fine example to anyone.

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  3. That's a really inspiring story, Suzanne. And I loved the photos!

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  4. Glad you liked the photos. I just got them off the internet.

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  5. What a nice post Suzanne. Sounds like a fabulous time!

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  6. Indeed it was. I just sat down and wrote down all the tunes I can remember. I'm still missing some.

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  7. Heart-warming post, Suzanne. People like Stephan inspire me to enjoy life more and complain less!

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  8. Me too, Maggie. And the thing is that this man has not a single bit of bitterness in him. It could be it's because he was born blind and has never known anything else, but still.

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  9. What an inspiring story. Thank you. Wonderful photos too. I used to love to square dance. You brought back pleasant memoires.

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  10. I love stories like this. These are the people who inspire us in so many ways. I'm sure you and your sons were pleased to meet him. Thnaks fo telling us about him.

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