Monday, January 14, 2019
When I first met Antonietta, I had just given birth to my first child- a big baby boy named Alex. Antonietta and her family came to visit us in Brampton. I remember her cuddling my baby, smiling, admiring and showing great love in her very expressive Italian way. So my first impression of Antonietta was a person who shows great love. And that impression stayed true for all the years that I have known her. There is another word that comes to mind when I think of Antonietta. It is the word, �ripple�. Here is the reason why. One day many, many years ago at the cottage in Balm Beach, she shared with us that she was going to school to improve her English. I always believed that going back to school as an adult would very difficult and intimidating so I was truly amazed at Antonietta�s courage to take on this challenge. But for her, it was no big deal. She knew her English was not perfect and simply wished to improve her skills. She had no worries or fears. I believe she had only gone to one class and I asked her if she learned any new words. She said one interesting thing she learned was the meaning of the word �ripple� � that it referred to the rings that are created when a stone is thrown into the water and how it affects everything around it. She said she had previously thought that ripple referred to the striped ice cream. I thought that was very interesting and cute. I remember so many things about Antonietta. Her warm smile, the sparkle in her eyes, her amazing laugh and the ease with which she whipped up amazing dishes. And there are so many memories at the Balm Beach cottage with her family and the Canzian family: great Thanksgiving dinners, summer at the beach, barbeques, sitting around the fire, going for long walks, playing cards and watching movies. Then there was the time one of the kids threw a rubber snake on the kitchen floor when she and Graziella were washing dishes. Their reaction was priceless. Graziella and Antonietta were like sisters. It was great to see their special friendship and hearing of their regular telephone calls between Windsor and Woodbridge. While Antonietta was casual at the cottage, at special events like weddings and anniversaries, she was always dressed so elegantly and she enjoyed dancing in her fashionable high heeled shoes. In face of challenges, she showed tremendous courage and strength. She was genuine, down-to-earth and had an enormously loving heart. She has affected me very deeply. She is a great example, a great role model of what we should strive to be as human beings. ... loving, caring, generous, hard working, hospitable, courageous, adventurous, ever striving to improve, and always, always thankful for family and friends and for times together. I believe she influenced everyone who had the honour to know her. And in remembering her learning of the definition of the word �ripple�, it is evident that Antonietta has created the ripple of great unending love and positive energy that has spread to everyone around her. She will forever be in our hearts.
