I started this story on October 5th, 2015. I have kept it to myself since then out of respect for the privacy of a great friend.
Tonight, sadly, I can now share this with the world.
Tonight I had a call from an old friend. When we left Vancouver for Kamloops, he and his wife were two of the people that we were sad to leave. He and I had spent quite a bit of time together, a lot of time thru work, and many more enjoyable hours as friends. We share an interest in motorcycles, boats and aviation, so it was easy to enjoy one another’s company.
He and his wife were very dear friends with Aniko and I, and they were amazing friends while we fought the losing battle with her cancer. We rode together and enjoyed many an adventure flying down the highway as well as sitting around the dinner table. They were a great support to me when Aniko was in her battle with cancer, and even bigger support after she slipped away from me.
They were wonderful in how they accepted Kathy into our friendship, and we continued to live life to its fullest, adventuring together on land, sea and in the air. He is a special person, who has always lived life to its fullest, and has so many adventures and stories to tell. I was gifted on more than one occasion with his tutorage on things, his guidance kept me out of the weeds with my 40’ toy hauler trailer, and he lent me as much of his marine experience as I could absorb whenever I was curious. He pushed me in my motorcycle riding ability, the friendly rivalry to be the best WE could be riding was always as pleasurable as it was educational.
He lives life the way that I can only strive to. To never leave an experience untried, to never let a dream pass put on the shelf for another day. He believes in being true to his friends, because he knows how important they are to ones quality of life. He is a combination of friend, brother and in some ways a father figure to me.
Tonight he called me to tell me that he will be going to see Aniko sometime far too soon. I am devastated at the news, but equally amazed at the peace in his voice. He is amazingly at peace with the news, something he chalks up to having made sure he packed his life full of every experience that he could. He takes great comfort in having lived life fully, and having chalked up so many experiences. He told me that while would have liked to have had more time, he is at peace that he was able to do so much in the years that he had. As I sit here with deep sorrow in my heart, I keep hearing his voice in my head as I replay the phone call and I am in awe of how at peace he sounded.
There is such a lesson in how he has lived his life, something that I am wanting to share with everyone. Life is an all you can eat buffet. It is expensive, and wonderful, and completely up to you to make sure you get your money’s worth. We can’t live life like every day is our last, that is a self-fulfilling prophecy. However you have to live life like tomorrow isn’t guaranteed, because it isn’t. Live your life to its fullest, be true to your friends, family and never, never pass on an experience because you can ‘do it tomorrow’. If all of the sudden your tomorrows run short, make sure you have done everything you can to be in a place where you have no regrets for experiences lost because you put them off. I live with the hope that when my time comes, I can have the peace in my heart and voice that he has now.
Out of respect for his privacy, I am purposely not using his name. One day if you read this and you see his name, know that we have said goodbye, and this tribute to a friend and how he lives his life has become a tribute to the memory of a friend gone to ride across the sky with Aniko.
This afternoon Len’s wife Kelly called me to tell me that he had left us on Tuesday to go be with Aniko. Tonight I am writing this with tears of sadness, feeling the pain that we that are left behind must accept so that those we love can be free of the pain they can’t otherwise escape. My heart aches for Kelly, but she is surrounded by the love of family and friends, and we will be there for her. Even in the sadness of Lens passing, the lessons he left behind on how to live life resonate in my soul. Thanks to Len, I have another goal to aim for, and a lesson to work into how I live my life.
When I look at the sky at sunset, I know that Aniko rides on the pink clouds across the sky, but now with Len on the blue ones watching over her for me.
Len Lambert was a great friend, and someone I am so much the better for knowing. I will miss you very much my friend.
Until we ride again…
Scott
