Ruth Rose Yaskow

When I thought about what to write, so many memories came to mimd, I didn’t know where to begin. Memories of a photo of little Brian, Marlene and my brother Len standing for a picture. My brother, with a large head that he eventually grew into, forever thereafter became known as Pumpkin Head. This, of course, I passed along to my niece and nephews…much to his chagrin. A taste of homemade chocolate cake with white icing and sprinkles on top. Sprinkles were a foreign surprise and that memory comes to mind every time I sprinkle them on cupcakes. The taste of steak flavoured with garlic and a steak spice that was like dining out at a restaurant, as salt and pepper was as exotic as we had at home. A memory of Ruth working in her garden who took time to teach me the way of growing vegetables and flowers. The house on the corner that meant I only had one more block to walk before I got home. Yes kids…we did walk miles to and from school. I was older than the rest of the gang, so I did not have a peer in the Yaskow family, but when my family moved to Edmonton and I stayed in Regina, Ruth was always someone I could visit to ground myself in a world where I was on my own at too early an age. I remember sitting in the living room, with snacks and coffee, watching some soap opera and discussing how life should go and the big Crown of Thorns plant that was always a topic of conversation. Ruth was my home away from home, my guardian when we were small when my mother was working two jobs and later my friend when I was far from my family. My mother considered Ruth to be her best friend and that remained until her dying day and she would always sadly remark how much she missed Regina and her best friend Ruth. When mom developed cancer and had already received radiation, Ruth came to visit. I don’t know if Ruth thought it was a right time to visit, but to my mother it couldn’t have been a better time. The visit was filled with laughs and talk of old times. For a short time, my mother could forget about the frightening road ahead. When my mother knew her time and ability to travel was nearing an end, she was determined to visit Ruth one more time. With painful knees and barely able to get up the steps, we took a Grey Hound. Unable to get on and off the bus in time for a bathroom break, she didn’t drink or eat anything until we reached Saskatoon, where we had a wait for our connection to Regina. She never complained. She was focused on Regina and seeing Ruth again…one more time, maybe for the last time. In our busy lives, we seldom stop and think about the people who have influenced us in life without them ever knowing it. People who are always with us when time and distance separates us. Ruth was one of those people. Memories of Ruth weaved in and out of my thoughts through out my years. My love of gardening began in that little garden in the back of the house on the corner. My love of cooking began with steak spice on a steak I ate many decades ago. And most importantly, finding a best friend for myself, like Ruth for my mom, that will be close to me until the end of my days. I also remember Ruth’s love of Sweet Peas and have grown them since our last visit with her. In the spring, after a long and bleak winter, from deep in the warming ground sprouts fallen seeds from summers past, like memories that warm our thoughts.

Ruth and I spent time having tea or coffee at her house and talking about families and looking over my Avon products . Although I have not seen her for quite a while I remember fondly our times together and what a wonderful person she was ! My condolences to her whole family.