Tuesday, November 16, 2021
I was a young 24 year old traveler from Australia when Bill and I met. He really was such a kind hearted man, the kind of person you rarely meet while traveling. He and I held such an open space for each other and with confidence Bill had shared with me things he’d struggled to share with others he’d known his entire life. Most people probably would have found Bill and I’s friendship to be sadly quite strange and I would argue because of this it was important that we existed for each other. Bill reinforced a lesson in me that masculinity shouldn’t be a barrier for expression, that if anything men of all ages, orientation and corners of the world can, together, help each other make sense of our thoughts and feelings. Bill and I talked very little since I left Cape Breton all those years ago, but the kindness he showed me was with me always. I’m gonna miss catching up with him when I return to the island next time. Rest Easy now Bill.