Christopher Jason Lane

I attended the funeral of a very young and very wise friend yesterday. We also celebrated his life, his music, and his memory, at a pub throughout the evening.

From the Waterloo Region Record:
CHRISTOPHER J. LANE 1979 - 2009 On Thursday, July 24, 2009, surrounded by family and friends, at K-W Health Centre of Grand River Hospital, Kitchener. Cherished husband, son, brother, and father-to-be. Arrangements are incomplete at this time. Information can be obtained by calling the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home , 171 King Street South, Waterloo at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Canadian Cancer Society.

Also from the Waterloo Region Record:
CHRISTOPHER J. LANE 1979 - 2009 It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Christopher Jason Lane, on Thursday, July 23, 2009, at the age of 29. Chris will be remembered by his loving family: his wife, Aimee (Sacilot); his parents, Eva and Chris; his sister, Leia; his brother-in-law, Bill Steven; his mother-in-law, Lorraine Steven (Barry); his father-in-law, Al Sacilot as well as his many aunts, uncles and cousins. Chris will also be remembered by his many friends, colleagues and fellow musicians. A celebration of Chris' life will be held at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home , 171 King St. S., Waterloo, on Thursday, July 30, 2009. The visitation will begin at 3:30 p.m. followed by the memorial service at 4:30 p.m. In honour of Chris' love for music a reception will be held at the Fox and Fiddle on King in uptown Waterloo at 6:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society through the funeral home at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.


Chris had a zest for life that is rarely found in our midst these days. One of Chris’s friends summed it up nicely on his Facebook page, a quote I unfortunately cannot find at the moment. He said something like, Chris seemed to have something figured out about life that the rest of us didn’t really know.

In addition to his day job at Research in Motion, Chris was a musician, singer, songwriter, and his music lives on on his MySpace page here. Enjoy!

Midway Through the Power of Now

I’m currently reading Eckhart Tolle’s book, The Power of Now. I’m finding it both fascinating and enlightening, the latter of which is most specifically Tolle’s goal in publishing this work.

To summarize thus far, Tolle posits that our minds are wonderful tools, but tools nonetheless. Much like a hammer is quite useful for certain tasks, so is the mind. But when we are no longer engaged in tasks that require a hammer, we place the hammer back down on the workbench. Tolle suggests that when we are not “using” our minds – for problem solving, remembering, etc. – that our minds are essentially hijacking our attention, and focusing our attention largely on fear and pain avoidance. He argues that our minds work incessantly, reliving past events, many painful, and also worrying about future events, in an effort to avoid pain (embarrassment, missed opportunity, etc.).

Tolle rightly suggests that the only time we can truly live our lives is in the NOW, in the moment. You can’t relive the past, nor can one live the future before it arrives. Life is in the moment, this moment, the current moment. And yet our minds, Tolle argues, do not allow us to be present in this moment, but rather compel us to relive past events or worry about future possibilities. Thus robbing us of the living of our lives in the moment.

It’s an interesting supposition.

A student suggests to Tolle that he/she cannot stop THINKING, “except maybe for a moment or two.”

Tolle responds, as taken directly from pages 16 and 17:

Then the mind is using you. You are unconsciously identified with it, so you don’t even know that you are its slave. It’s almost as if you were possessed without knowing it, and so you take the possessing entity to be yourself. The beginning of freedom is the realization that you are not the possessing entity – the thinker. Knowing this enables you to observe the entity. The moment you start watching the thinker, a higher level of consciousness becomes activated. You then begin to realize that there is a vast realm of intelligence beyond thought, that thought is only a tiny aspect of that intelligence. You also realize that all things that truly matter – beauty, love, creativity, joy, inner peace – arise from beyond the mind. You begin to awaken.

More to follow when I finish reading this work.

Soggy, Busy, Enjoyable Weekend

It’s been an interesting summer thus far, with cool temperatures and sporadic rain fall. This year’s 100th staging of the Canadian Open has suffered from heavy rains and lengthy rain delays. Hopefully the tournament will wrap up sometime late today.

Apparently the pros have set a PGA TOUR record with seven holes-in-one thus far at the Canadian Open. Mike Weir enjoyed one of those.

Unlike the golfers in Oakville, I have just had a productive and most enjoyable weekend. Saturday was spent with my two boys pursuing various activities. One of their friends was also over for a visit, which made for less work for all as we made cookies and then devoured them afterwards.

Sunday afternoon I visited St. Jacobs and had my wallet continually challenged by wonderful antiques, fascinating current release books and also captivating historical volumes. (Put simply, I’m a sucker for old books.) In the end I escaped unscathed, save for a relatively minor book purchase.

The rest of the weekend was spent working away on Parmasters KW, lining up the remaining capital required, etc. Some investment opportunities remain, for those of you that may be interested. We’re now spreading the word far and wide, as we finalize things and get ready for the next phase of the center’s development.

For now, time to head to the office.

I’ll end with this quote from Fitzgerald’s translation of a selection of 11th century Persian poems, The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. An historical volume of this work found its way into my hands yesterday, in St. Jacobs. This quote has been a favourite since I first read it back in high school, and it forms a gentle reminder of words to remember as we all embark on a fresh week.

The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all your Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all your Tears wash out a Word of it.
-The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam - Edward Fitzgerald

Clarity of Thought

I’ve just returned from a morning walk. I find walking leads to a clarity of thought that is seldom matched.

Walking, for me at least, affords a different type of peace than meditating, or being perfectly still. Somehow, in the act of walking, I achieve clarity in my priorities related to work, business and other industry. Those tasks that must be accomplished now stand out from others that can wait.

As I walk, new tasks or directions also come to the fore, and are quickly prioritized based on urgency and importance. (I’ve blogged about the urgency and importance methods previously here.)

Whilst I’d never claim to be representative of this quote in any way, shape nor form, this truth did come to mind this morning.

“The art of resting the mind and the power of dismissing from it all care and worry is probably one of the secrets of our great men.” -Captain J.A. Hatfield

Clearly, as I walk, my mind does not rest entirely. But “care and worry” are dismissed entirely, and replaced with industry and action. The resulting power is tremendous.

As Terry Gulick said, “If it’s meant to be, it’s up to me.”

Straight-Line Golf (TM) Coaching

It was another busy weekend, of course, as most are of late.

Saturday was spent focused on Parmasters KW progress, with good strides made on the capital side of things. We’re making strong progress in all aspects of the business, but capital is definitely where we spend the majority of our time. Our investor team continues to grow, both in size and expertise, which is wonderful.

Sunday I focused on my boys as we did a few chores around the house and then made time for play as well. They cut the grass, we cleaned out the truck, did some dishes and laundry, tossed the football around for quite a while, watched a movie and, in the afternoon, I took them out to the range and provided some Straight-Line Golf (TM) coaching.

At Parmasters we teach a simplified, streamlined and easier-on-the-back and body swing system, that we call Straight-Line Golf. I’ve blogged about this a few times, including here and here.

With my youngest we focused on grip and backswing. The grip is so fundamental; I described it to him like the foundation of a house. A correct grip brings with it the possibilities of a solid swing and golf shot, whereas an incorrect grip makes a solid swing and golf shot far less likely. His backswing was behind him, and thus very flat, as opposed to predominantly out in front of his body, and more vertical. He made great progress.

As for my older lad, his grip was solid, backswing, etc. His only real issue was a twisting action. Traditional golf involves a coiling of the body during backswing and an uncoiling during the actual stroke. Straight-Line Golf – and hence the name – involves far more of a slight lateral movement down the line, STRAIGHT down the line, as opposed to twisting and untwisting. He also made great progress.

This morning it’s back to work on capital predominantly. And I’ll get back at it.

Tough Day for Weir

I’ve just heard an update from The Open Championship and Canada’s favourite golfing son Mike Weir has apparently “blown up” during his second round. My latest update puts him at 8 over on the day after 17 holes and tied for 108th.

Of course, it’s very early in the second round, but it looks like Mr. Weir will have the weekend off. He’s amongst some prestigious company at T108 currently, including Ben Curtis, Charles Howell III, Colin Montgomerie, Paul Casey and Tim Clark.

Thank you to my ScoreMobile Blackberry application from Score Media Inc. for the latest updates.

I’ve decided I’ll take my two boys and head to the Mike Weir Charity Classic on Monday. We’re looking forward to taking in some great golf and hopefully some summer weather, for a change.

As I practiced on the driving range at Rebel Creek the other day, and I watched the varied swings and abilities of the others on the range, I was reminded of yet another Thoreau quote, adjusted slightly by yours truly:

“I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life [and his golf game] by conscious endeavour.” -Henry David Thoreau (from Walden: Or, Life in the Woods)

Mike Weir knows this, and lives it every day, including today. Hopefully many of those on the range yesterday will visit Parmasters Kitchener-Waterloo and take up some Straight-Line Golf (tm), aka hitting the ball long and straight.

Success Unexpected

I came across another wonderful quote from Henry David Thoreau the other day. (Thank you to a friend and colleague whom attended a local seminar and retrieved some materials for me.)

“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams and endeavours to live the life which his is imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” –Henry David Thoreau (from Walden: Or, Life in the Woods)

I’ve just added this quote to the list of similar truths I keep handy in my Blackberry. It occurs to me, as I add yet another Thoreau quote to my knowledge, that I really should read his book Walden: Or, Life in the Woods. Perhaps I’ll do so next month.

I’m currently enjoying Eckhart Tolle’s book The Power of Now. It’s revealing and enlightening, and yet so very obvious as well. Just like the Thoreau quote above.

I’ve been busy lately, with little time to blog, and to pursue many other activities. But there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Of course, it’s a huge week in golf, with The Open Championship kicking off tomorrow. Time will tell if Padraig Harrington can do it yet again.

And, incredibly, Mike Weir and many other players will be back in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) on Monday afternoon to partake in the inaugural Mike Weir Charity Classic (that kicks off the Canadian Open week). I think we should all tip a hat to the many players that will spend part of Sunday night flying back to Canada to support Mike Weir and his foundation. (“The Mike Weir Foundation is dedicated to advancing the physical, emotional and educational welfare of children.” –From the Canadian Open website.)

For now, back to work and some future “success unexpected”.