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On Sunday, May 27, I along with a few thousand others, viewed a fantastic parade celebrating Waterâ€" loo‘s 150th. For the many more thousands of Waterloo citizens who missed this great event, for whatever reason, the Waterloo Chronicle supplied a glimpse of the excitement along the route of Caroline Street and on to the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex. Whereas these photos on page 12 of the May 30 edition of the Waterâ€" loo Chronicle were great, the absence of the City of Waterloo‘s own float deprived many people of seeing what their tax dollars providâ€" ed, and a significant interpretation of this important event. So in the interest of filling this gap. I‘m supplying an unprofessionâ€" al photo of Waterloo‘s float. Citizens missed out on seeing City of Waterloo‘s float I have, over that quarterâ€"century, managed to conceal my complete lack of parenting skills by just hanging around all the time, occasionally offering sage advice that even I don‘t follow. Every now and then, I would be at the right place, and just the right time, and would get the opportuniâ€" ty to be somewhat useful. In the early years, this usuâ€" ally meant using my brute man strength to open something important, like a container of bubbles. It's only taken 26 years, but they have finally all been sucked into the vortex. Which means, of course, that Father‘s Day was a complete success. Later on, I would be called upon to fix something. Or pretend to fix something. On most occasions, that would work well enough to fool them for a few days, until it broke | )[ l again, and I could come up with another lousy patchwork solution MA But, like all dads, 1 was revered for my skills at repair 1 was also revered for my homework helping ability. When you talk for a living, it appears you gain a certain talent for coming up with some words which will cover the bases in many different acaâ€" demic subjects. I discovered new skills. French braids, pony tails, sewing sparkles on dance cosâ€" tumes. And I brushed off some old ones B Playing catch, throwing footballs and BO making snowmen. U gained much new information. 1 could tell you more about ballet and jazz dancâ€" ing than you probably want to know. And my abiliâ€" ties to talk to members of the opposite sex picked up dramatically I was constantly dropping one of my three girls off, at some activity, and because of my schedule, I was often the only man in the T6om. However, as time marched on, I became moare and more marginalized. I was a dork, who didn‘t know anything, and didn‘t understand. And maybe 1 didn‘t. Despite the huge volume of estrogen floating around in my house, I had It‘s nice to get the perfect Father‘s Day gift Vic Hiebert Waterloo BRIAN BOURKE COMMENT Hushed conversations were held. But 1 could never be a part of them. They concerned boys, and what would I possibly know about that? â€" But I could still drive them somewhere, as long as I didn‘t ask any questions, and as long as I avoided any kind of discussions with their friends. . And that included the phone. Not that I ever got a chance to answer it over an almost 10â€"year period. It would barely get a single tone of the ring out, before une of three hands, electronic gunslingers all of them, would snap up a cordless somewhere. remained, for the most part, male. "I‘ll get it, I‘ll get it, DON‘T ANSWER THE PHONEU!" AN They each gave me cards which perâ€" fectly fit their personalities. The oldest, RKE with a nice sentiment inside, and a handwritten sarcastic remark. The midâ€" dle one, always the mushiest, with a verse that made me cry. And the youngest, knowing my current rant on the abundance of cat hair in my house, made sure my card had a kitten on the front. Nice shot. Did I get a nice gift? Absolutely. I got to see theth grow up into interesting, independent young women. After all the trials and tribulations, the tears, and the laughs, there‘s not much better than that. Anyone, I have learned, can be a father. But it takes children like them, to make you a dad. Thanks ladies! It still rings in my ears. And then, in a moment, it all changed. Although sometimes they didn‘t act like it, they became adults, and we could have actual conversaâ€" tions. Jt seemed as if we might actually know something. 1 was allowed to talk to their friends again. We didn‘t have to hide in our room, or in the garage anymore. Sometimes, it seemed, they actually enjoyed hanging around with us. And it all turned into the perfect Father‘s Day week. Our youngest gradâ€" uated from college, and the oldest two each played a round of golf with me. CHRON ret "the Hitman" Hart won plenty of championships in Bhis over 20â€"year pro wrestling career, but his toughest opponent â€" and his greatest victory â€" came in the form of a devastating stroke in the summer of 2002. While visiting friends in Kona, Hawaii this past week, Hart took time to speak with me over the telephone about the stroke that caused him partial paralysis, requiring months of physical therapy. The Calgaryâ€"born celebrity and World Wrestling Entertainâ€" ment (WWE) Hall of Famer is the new spokesperson for the March of Dimes Stroke Recovery Canada program. s "I woke up in the hospital feeling like 1 was at the bottom of a hole, flat on my back with nowhere to go," recalled Hart. "I got up each day though telling myself that 1 am going to get out of there." Undergoing intensive rehabilitation from an interdiscipliâ€" nary team of therapists and speechâ€"language pathologists, Hart says he owes his rapid recovery to the treatment he received at the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, AB. "I noticed from doctors that there was encouragement, but no guarantees," said Hart. "But the rehab staff stuck with me and helped me gain confidence and believe that I was going to get better, â€" and I knew I had to just buckle down ) and do everything they asked me to N \l\\[ l \l 3 do." AV R IS Physiotherapists worked closely with Hart to regain his ability to walk. Speechâ€"language pathologists worked with him to overcome various speechâ€" related impairments, including slurred speech and an inability to conâ€" vey emotion due to drooping facial muscles. For a man who had made his living in the highly theatrical business of pro wrestling, such limitations were crushing. "After all these years now, I find the little deficiencies you get from a stroke improve and trickle back over time," said the father of four. As well, it has been a long road reclaiming back the physical strength he once possessed â€" lifting 350 pounds prior to the stroke. Just last week, Hart successfully benchâ€"pressed an impressive 295 pounds. Hart has also just finished writing his autobiography. Havâ€" ing been raised amid the royal family of pro wrestling â€" all Hart‘s siblings got into the wrestling business â€" and trained in his father Stu‘s infamous "dungeon," Hart‘s book promises to be a fascinating peek behind the curtain of pro wrestling. "I feel like the weight of the world is off my back now that my book is done," said Hart. "I guess like a lot of stroke people, 1 think you find a whole new way of looking at life when you‘re lying on your back or in a wheelchair. You realize that life is so precarious and short and you never know what‘s waiting for vou around the corner." Four years prior to the stroke, Hart‘s brother Owen fell and died during a stunt, while being lowered from the rafters of an arena during a live wrestling event. It was a tragedy that, in some ways, the elder brother has been able to put into better perspective since his stroke. _ "I went through the tragedy of Owen‘s death and lived with so much grief," said Hart. "Since my stroke, I try to see everyâ€" day as a positive." e ‘Toda{(. Hart is helping March of Dimes Canada in its efforts to improve the quality of life for all Canadian stroke survivors, through education about postâ€"recovery support. "Everybody sooner or later faces a moment of truth, where you have to rethink your lifestyle approach," concluded Hart. "When you‘ve gone through something like what I‘ve gone through, you find yourself reflecting on your life and you become more clued in to what‘s important and what‘s not." And what‘s important is that Hart is an inspiration to all stroke survivors, exemplifying what it means to survive and thrive. Back in his wrestling days, Hart had a slogan: I‘m the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be. His recovery from his stroke â€" and the work he has done to help others in the same situation â€" has given new weight and truth to that motto. Marshall Ward is a visual artist and independent filmmaker Email is welcome at mward@wilu.ca. A stroke can‘t keep . _ the Hitman down WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, June 20, 2007 * 9 MARSHALL