Jim MacBeth
Jim was my sponsor and my friend from 2014 until his passing Dec 1, 2022.
I miss him a lot.
His memorial was Dec 10, 2022; the hall was packed with family, friends. His daugther Deidre gave the eulogy, this was my memorial speech.
Eight years ago I approached a big intersection of my life, one of those “make some serious changes or things are not going to turn out so well”' watershed moments. Lucky for me, Jim was at that intersection, having a smoke, and offering guidance.
That intersection turned into a curving road that made stops at his studio, the Coquitlam Grill, and various coffee joints right up until a week and a half ago. We'd see each other regularly, sometimes just the two of us, often times meeting up with other like minded sojourners.
Jim was a mentor, a confidante and a friend. We shared some characteristics - thinking, overthinking, philosophising and enjoying coming up with solutions for the world's ills - all over a cup of coffee. He was very proud of his family, and was always interested in hearing about mine, particularly the latest hijinx of our 110 pound lapdog Henry.
Jim didn't just help me over bumps in the road, he helped me see the road itself more clearly, and when he offered suggestions I listened. He helped me hold the insight that the longest journey in the world is from the head to the heart , and his words had a lived-wisdom quality that gave them extra weight and allowed them to sink into my often self-centered outlook.
But as important as Jim was to me, there's a bigger narrative my anecdotes point to - how many Jerry's Jim was there for over the years. Over the last week in phonecalls and face-to-faces, I can't tell you how many people had stories similar to mine. Jim showing up, being present, and sharing lived-wisdom out.
Wisdom doesn't just appear, of course, it's built on a foundation, and in Jim's case that foundation was made of equal parts philosopher’s intellect, family-man's heart, artist's eye and mystic's spirit.
If Jim’s life was a canvas, wisdom was a primary colour, as was humour; compassion; humility, and selflessness.
If he were here right now, he'd likely remind me that if I thought I was being humble up here, I wasn't. He'd also offer that I did seem to like the sound of my own voice. To that end, I'll start to wrap up by giving three axioms that Jim liked to share. They had more authority when he spoke them, because they weren't just words, they were part of his lived experience.
They're simple but profound, and have the ability to both calm and salve people in the moment, as well as offer serious points for profound contemplation. Sometimes you'd get one, sometimes all three, but their cumulative impact was like a persistent wave changing the shape of a shoreline. "It's all going to be ok" "You're exactly where you need to be" and finally "It's all going to be ok because it already IS ok"
Jim, you made me think, feel, laugh, and kept me honest.
And perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay you is a shared observation I’ve heard a lot over the last week.
“Jim made me a better person”
May you, your family, friends and community know peace, Jim.
