Elsewhere in the special edition Christmas section of The Outlook, I presented a questionnaire and took my queries to a handful of people from the local area, getting their thoughts on the holidays and some of the memories that are closest to them.
I figured I’d be a real Grinch if I didn’t take the time to answer my own questions, so here are my own reflections on Christmas and the memories of the holiday season that continue to remain close to me.
What is your greatest Christmas memory? Why does it stick with you?
This one is tough because if you asked me this before last Christmas, I had a go-to memory that definitely took top honors. The most recent memory that is fighting for first place took place last year when my family and I pooled some money together and rented an amazing cabin up at Candle Lake for four days. It had always been a dream of my mom’s to spend Christmas “up North” somewhere, and it just so happened that we ended up at Candle Lake, a place where we took many summer vacations when I was growing up. The weather was gorgeous, the scenery was amazing, the wildlife was plentiful, and the accommodations were top-notch. Without a doubt, an amazing Christmas memory and something we hope to do again in the future.
However, here’s my greatest memory of all-time. I think I’ve told this story before…
It was 1995, I was 10 years old, and it was going to be another packed house at the Ruttle home in Conquest that Christmas. My oldest brother Jim was the first to arrive one night, and he doled out gifts to Mom, Dad, and my brothers. The only thing he seemed to forget was a gift for me, but he explained that my present was “in the works” and that it would be in the mail shortly after the holidays. I played it cool. I understood. “Hey, that’s okay. I can wait!” Then I went and watched TV in the living room. A few minutes go by and I hear my dad excuse himself from the kitchen to go to the bathroom. The only thing is that Dad doesn’t exactly go to the bathroom, at least not at first. He saunters through the living room, looks to see he isn’t being watched, walks up to me in front of the TV, gets down on one knee (which couldn’t have been easy as a hard-living and heavy guy in his 60’s who basically worked his entire life), and proceeds to tell me what’s coming for me in the mail.
My father had a longstanding reputation among many as a gruff, hard-edged kind of guy who didn’t take any BS from anyone and could make anyone stand stiff as a board with just one look. When Jack Ruttle said ‘Jump’, a lot of people instinctively replied, ‘How high, JR?’ As his son, I can tell you that he definitely had that side to him, but in many other cases, Jack showed a much softer and vulnerable side. This was one of those times. My dad apparently didn’t like the fact that one of his boys had nothing to open from one of his other boys, so he elected to spoil what I was eventually going to receive.
“I know you won’t have it over Christmas, but it’ll be here soon enough, and I’ll have it waiting for you when you get home from school one day, alright?” I was good with that, and Jack gave my shoulders a fatherly shake and he proceeded to his original destination of the bathroom while I continued watching wrestling on TV.
The gift, in case you’re wondering, turned out to be an awesome jersey from the Calgary Hitmen team of the WHL, a team co-founded by and named after Canadian pro wrestling legend and Calgary native Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart. I loved it. I even wore it to an autograph signing that Bret had in Saskatoon a few months later, and he took special notice of it in a city that was decidedly ‘Blades Country’.
That memory has stayed with me for 24 years and it immediately comes to my mind whenever the holidays draw near. People can think what they want about my dad and his “influence” in his heyday, but I knew the man better than most, particularly in his final years. The simple act of a father looking out for his son’s feelings during the holidays sums up the kind of person Jack Ruttle was: A big man with a big heart. That’s why it says precisely those words on his gravestone.
What do you love most about the holidays? Why?
I think what I love most about the holidays is the way they keep us connected with our roots, the way they make us think back to all the great times spent with family and friends over the years and the memories that are uniquely special to us for a myriad of reasons. I mean, I just described something that happened almost a quarter century ago in full detail, so you can tell it means a lot to me and only me. I also love getting together with family and friends over good food, good drinks and good times.
Can you recall the greatest Christmas gift you ever received? What made it so special?
I think that would have to be the video camera that my parents got me in 2003 when I was 18 years old because looking back on it now, I think it was the gift that started a reverberating effect that eventually led me to my career in journalism. At the time, I had hopes of going to film school and becoming a Hollywood screenwriter and director, and the video camera allowed me to start getting my feet wet in that area. I did eventually go to film school, but I came to realize that Hollywood just wasn’t going to happen, and what I really enjoyed was capturing things through a lens. This would lead to my passion for photography, something that I utilize in my journalistic ventures.
How are you spending this coming holiday season?
The Ruttle family is staying home this year for the first time in three years. The past two years have seen us hitting the road for the holidays – Calgary in 2017, Candle Lake in 2018 – so we’re keeping it simple and enjoying a hometown holiday this year. I’m in charge of Christmas Eve supper, and we’re looking forward to a relaxed, cozy, at-home feel. I’m also looking forward to getting out and seeing some friends, and there’s a New Year’s Eve event at the Conquest rink in support of the fire department, so that should be cool.
Describe what Christmas means to you.
It means showing people what they mean to you and spending time with them in order to create new memories and spread a little bit of added joy. The world we live in today constantly shows us that tomorrow isn’t always guaranteed, so we have an obligation to enjoy the people around us and make even the smallest of things count. It also means reflecting on what we’ve done, seen or experienced in the past year and looking ahead to what new challenges or goals may lay ahead.
For this week, and for the holiday season, that’s been the Ruttle Report.
