15 years ago I asked Jim to be a guest speaker at the opening of a program for ex-offenders at the Port Phillip Prison. This program was not connected with Reach but to his great credit he accepted.
The program opening was scheduled for a Monday morning, 2 days after he played for the Demons on the Saturday. When he arrived he was obviously very sore and found it hard to sit in the small chair provided. But he never complained. He was an absolute Gentlemen and when he rose (with some difficulty) to speak he told two wonderful stories that had the room transfixed. I will recount these stories later tonight.
This man was special and when people speak of his aura it is no exaggeration. I am not religious but Jim was so I leave you with this Irish blessing:
“I follow the plan God laid for me. I saw His face, I heard His call, I took His hand and left it all.”
Vale Jim Stynes
Sorry for the delay.
The first story involved a scientist who had been unable to solve a medical quandary. As he walked along the seaside littered with 'beached' starfish he noticed a young boy throwing them back to see one by one. When he stated to the boy that there were so many and "How could he expect to save them all", the boy replied: "I know that, but I can save this one" .
The second involved a man serving a life sentence in jail for murder and his 2 sons. One was also in gaol for murder, the other a successful father and professional. When asked by an investigative Journalist why they believed their lives turned out so, both independently replied: "With a father like mine what would you expect"!
Jim obviously told these allegorical stories with much more literary subtlety than I just did....but if you look closely at his life you will see why they were important to him and the audience at the time.
