We can be assured of one thing in this life: time keeps moving on. Turn around and we’re ten years older. It’s like a flash or as if someone pushed a button making it happen.
That was especially true at this year’s Selkirk College graduation on April 20. Several people who once worked at the college or had dealings with the college showed up for the occasion. Except for a few outward signs of aging, they hadn’t changed very much.
Then I realized it’s been 10 years or more since I’ve visited with these people, and truly they probably thought I’d aged, too. In fact ten years ago I had more hair and wasn’t quite as grey along the edges.
The first person I met was Leo Perra, who was the President of Selkirk College for 20 years from 1980 to 2000. He arrived at Selkirk in the same year I began to teach there, so my time at Selkirk paralleled his until he retired 10 years ago.
Since then, he has been working for and consulting with many B.C. educational and governmental institutions. He has developed a few wrinkles and grey hairs, but he told me he hasn’t slowed down very much.
The second person I came upon was Fred Wah, who taught at Selkirk College in its early days and then moved on to direct the creative writing program at David Thompson University Centre in Nelson. Upon its demise in the 1980s, Wah came back to Selkirk, teaching a practical writing program before moving on. He completed his career as a professor of creative writing at the University of Calgary in the 1990s and early 21st Century.
I don’t know whether he looked much older, but he certainly had a few more wrinkles. That hasn’t stopped him from pursuing his writing, though. He has published several books since retiring and was recently selected as this year’s Canadian Poet Laureate, a prestigious position, indeed.
These two elderly statesmen came to the Selkirk College graduation because they were both receiving awards. Leo Perra was instrumental many years ago in successfully negotiating a professional music program for Selkirk College. Because this program has become a mainstay in Selkirk College’s educational offerings, Selkirk called him back to receive an honorary degree in Professional Music.
Fred Wah was a noted teacher of creative writing and designed many of the creative writing courses at DTUC in the early 1980s. He also taught English in his early days at the college. During that time, he wrote and published extensively, winning the Governor General’s Award for poetry in 1985. So he was a popular choice for this year’s Distinguished Educator Award, which he shared with retired English instructor, Don Wilson.
My once-upon-a-time colleague, Don Wilson, was not at the graduation to accept his Distinguished Educator award because one of his daughters was getting married that very day. During his time at Selkirk College, no instructor came close to the level of popularity he achieved. Students lined up to take his courses, and he was much admired for his abilities in the classroom and for his innovative approaches.
He has been retired for a while, and I only see him at the yearly scholarship and bursary awards events the college holds. Unlike me, he has not lost his hair, but it gets whiter and whiter.
So here were these important people from my past and the past of Selkirk College come back to be further applauded and receive tributes for their work. Regardless of the new wrinkles in their smiles, they were the same good people who once gave their best years to Selkirk College.