Charming as hell

I was going through some files when I found this photograph and it brought back a memory from 2008. It was a fundraiser for the Timmins hospital on a rainy afternoon in June.  

              Left to right, Charlie Angus, Jack Layton and Tom Laughren.

The event was a Ribfest. It was raining. I had some time chatting with the late Jack Layton. He came across as really wanting to be a fellow that was liked. The more we talked, the more I wanted him to succeed in that. I mentioned that the rain reminded me of a day of canoeing. He agreed and told me of his experiences canoeing on the Nahanni River in the Northwest Territories, one of Canada's iconic wilderness rivers. He was charming as hell. I liked him. I didn't always agree with Layton's politics or his tactics, but I liked the man. It was a good day.