What's an IPP anyway?

Lately, I've been writing about my IPP a great deal. In an earlier post, I promised an explanation of what exactly the project is, but have yet to deliver an answer. So, It's time I address what the acronym stands for before I move any further with my summer blogging.

IPP stands for Independent Professional Project, and it is something all second-year CreComm students must complete in order to graduate. The project takes the entire eight months of our second year, and in many cases, the summer as well. The sky is the limit for what a student can choose for their project. One student is visiting and blogging about every provincial park in Manitoba (and there are a lot). Another student is travelling to South Africa to film the World Cup soccer tournament. Me? I'm writing stories.

The collection of stories I am writing is based on the life of my late great-aunt, Rose Mary Sykes. This is a topic that is very important to me, because my aunt was one of the most influential individuals in my life. I was lucky enough to sit down with her the year before she died, and take notes while she told me about her life. The story I received was incredible, and her tale contains issues I believe most people will find interesting. She told me about travel across oceans, tuberculosis sanatoriums, love, marriage, divorce, abuse, mental institutions, fire and gangsters. Rose shared a truly compelling tale, and she did so with a clear-headed precision that was impressive, considering she was ninety-one years old at the time. Her husband passed away years ago, and she had no children, so I feel it is up to me to tell her story.

Below, I have included the eulogy I wrote and presented at her funeral in 2008. I wanted to get up and talk about her because she was so important to me. The eulogy was one of the writing samples I submitted when applying for admission to CreComm, so I guess it's fitting that I can only graduate after I complete a project that's largely about her. Enjoy...

Today we are here to remember and celebrate the fulfilling life of my great-aunt, Rose Mary Sykes. To be perfectly honest, I really did not know much about my aunt’s life until recently. Being many years younger, and living two provinces away, I rarely had an opportunity to learn about her. I was only aware of simple details, such as the fact that she grew up on a farm and lived in a log cabin. Thankfully, I was given the chance to learn about not only her life but my family history when I visited Armstrong with my mother last August. For roughly six hours, over two days, I sat down with Rose, and avidly took notes while she proceeded to tell me her life story.

The narrative I received was filled with descriptions of family, turbulent times, travel, and most importantly, love. I learned things I never knew about my background, such as the fact that Rose was a first-generation Canadian whose parents immigrated to Canada from Czechoslovakia at the outbreak of the First World War. In fact, Rose and her siblings spoke Czech before English. I learned interesting facts as well, like Rose’s spontaneous decision in 1998 to ride in a hot air balloon. As she relayed her story, specific events and experiences stood out from the rest for me. I will share those memories with you now.

In 1968, my aunt planned a trip to Norway and Sweden, and fearlessly embarked on the adventure alone. Her first husband, Oscar, had planned a vacation for himself, yet failed to include Rose in the travel plans. Refusing to be left out, and because she couldn't be told not to do something, my aunt took out a small loan, purchased a plane ticket, and spent three weeks travelling from Oslo to Stockholm. When I asked Rose what the best part of the trip was, she replied “being able to do it my way!”

In 1996, Rose planned another major vacation. There were numerous differences, however, as this time she did not travel alone, and she crossed the Pacific, not the Atlantic Ocean. The destination was Hawaii, a place Rose had hungered to visit her entire life. Luckily, it was my family of four and my grandmother who were invited to accompany her on this vacation. It was on this getaway that I really “met” my aunt for the first time, and what an impression she left on me. I was initially amused by her love for horticulture. She continually made remarks such as, “I wonder what that plant is called,” and “ohhh, how do you grow that one?”

I was also awestruck by her spirit. I still remember vividly one morning about halfway through the trip when Rose announced we were all going up in a helicopter and flying over the dormant, yet still very alive volcano of Haleakala on Maui. I was terrified, and opted to remain on the ground with my grandma. But there seemed to be no fear in my aunt’s mind, and she hopped onto that helicopter without a moment’s hesitation. I will always admire her for that, because as I proved by remaining on the ground, travelling 10,000 feet above sea level in a tiny aircraft is a feat for anyone. At the time, Rose was eighty years old.

But the event in her life which I want to place the most emphasis on was her fourteen year marriage to Frank Sykes. Rose’s first marriage to Oscar ended in divorce in 1972. One year later, she met Frank. The two fell in love and were married on June 12, 1973. When I asked my aunt what Frank was like, she became emotional, and responded simply with “he was the most wonderful man.” She spoke of him so fondly, and with such admiration that it was difficult to believe he had passed away nineteen years prior. Rose told me that Frank was her soul mate, and that she was blessed to have found true love at age fifty-eight. Rose also took the opportunity to teach me a lesson which had taken over half of her lifetime to learn. She told me never to give up on love, and not to settle until I found that one person who would change my life. My aunt said the years spent with Frank were the happiest of her life, and I will always hold her advice on love close to my heart.

I will forever be grateful to have had the opportunity to visit Armstrong, BC, and learn all about Rose’s life. As I reflected back upon the scribbled notes I had written almost one year ago, I could not help but smile at the picture her story painted. Overall, I would describe my aunt as a strong, determined, witty yet kind woman who was always dedicated to those she loved. When I have children, many years from now, I will tell them all about my great-aunt Rose, and she will continue to live on throughout my family’s collective memory for generations to come.

Thank you.

Hopefully, I'll be able to make her proud with my IPP. Currently, I have 12,000 words and nine blogs about my efforts. By the end of the summer, I will have created a collection of stories about a truly remarkable woman.

Stay tuned. I'm just getting warmed up.