The Story Behind the Photo
The first time I saw Mitch Albom was in 2003 at the Ryerson Theater in Toronto he was there to promote his book The Five People You Meet in Heaven. It was his first work of fiction after writing Tuesdays With Morrie.
Of the stories he told that night the most memorable was about his first appearance on The Oprah Winfrey show just after the initial release of Tuesdays With Morrie. He told us his intention with writing the book was to raise money for his former professor’s medical expenses. The original print run was only 25,000 copies. Although it was a small print run somehow one of those books found its way to Oprah’s desk. Shortly after that he was invited to the show to talk to Oprah about the book. As he waited in the green room one of the show's producers told him he had better make sure his publisher had books ready to go as soon as the show finished. Neither he nor his publishers had any idea of what was about to happen. Finally, the last segment arrived, and Mitch made his way onto the stage to meet Oprah. He recalls it being a time when Oprah had really big furniture on her set. He then says, “as you can see I'm not a really big guy so when I sat down my feet barely touched the ground”. He continued telling us that he was so nervous talking to Oprah, that even though he had a shirt and sports jacket on that day he sweated through both. He laughed and said, “that’s not easy to do”. He finished the story by saying the producer was right, the demand for the book after the show exploded. To date, Tuesdays with Morrie has sold over 14 million copies. Not bad for a book that many publishers turned down before he was on the Oprah show. I saw Mitch Albom on Super Soul Sunday with Oprah discussing the 20th anniversary of the Tuesdays with Morrie. I noticed he was wearing only a shirt and no sports jacket. I guess he has gotten over being nervous talking to Oprah. It also looked like his feet were planted firmly on the ground. He has recently released his latest book called The Next Person You Meet in Heaven, which is a sequel to The Five People You Meet in Heaven. I have enjoyed all his books and look forward to reading this latest one.
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Tuesdays with Morrie (1997)
The Five People You Meet in Heaven (2003) For One More Day (2006) Have a Little Faith (2009) The Next Person You Meet in Heaven (2018)
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Coming soon to The Story Behind the Photo is Kamal Al-Solaylee, Diana Galbaldon, Terry Fallis, Judy Blume, Bryan Baeumler, Carol Shields (Anne and Nicholas Giardini), Nino Ricci, Kim Thuy, Ami McKay, Joseph Boyden, Elizabeth Strout, Randy Bachman and many more.
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Bobby Orr. What can I say about Bobby Orr? I've had a crush on him since I was eight. I can remember watching Hockey Night in Canada on Wednesday and Saturday nights hoping it would be the Bruins so I could see him play. My friend Angela and I used to cut out all the NHL standings from the newspaper and tape them in our hockey notebooks. We were pretty hard-core hockey fans even at that young age.
When I was nine or ten, I got a Bobby Orr hockey game for Christmas. Of all the gifts I remember getting as a child my Bobby Orr hockey game is one that stands out. It had the original six teams Boston, Chicago, New York, Detroit, Montreal, and Toronto. Of course, being a Bruins fan that was the team I always played. I had Bobby, Phil Esposito, and Derek Sanderson on my team. A trio that was pretty hard to beat. Even after Bobby had stopped playing, I always hoped and dreamed that someday I would have the opportunity to meet him. Well on October 30, 2018 that dream came true. I was very excited but also a little nervous. I had been waiting 48 years to meet Bobby Orr and my expectations were pretty high. I was the first one in Group Four of the signing line. For the most part it was mostly men who were there to get their books signed, many of whom would not have been born when Bobby played defense for the Bruins. The line moved quickly and after a short time I was next in line. I handed my phone to the Indigo staff member to take my photo, quickly explaining what button to push and to please, please take more than one picture since I often blinked. I took a deep breath and then it was my turn. I stepped forward and the first thing Bobby Orr said to me was “Well hello young lady” and he held out his hand to shake mine. At that moment you could have knocked me over with a feather. As he signed my book, I told him I'd been waiting to meet him since I was a kid and that I'd had a Bobby Orr hockey game. Then it was time to have our picture taken. Not only did he turn towards the camera, but he held my hand and put his other hand on my back. I could not have been any happier as I left the signing line that night. In fact, I could have easily skipped all the way home. Not only did Bobby Orr meet my expectations, but he far exceeds them. I waited 48 years to meet him and it was worth every minute of the wait.
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Coming soon to The Story Behind the Photo is Mitch Albom, Kamal Al-Solaylee, Diana Galbaldon, Terry Fallis, Judy Blume, Bryan Baeumler, Carol Shields (Anne and Nicholas Giardini), Nino Ricci, Kim Thuy, Ami McKay, Joseph Boyden, Elizabeth Strout and many more.
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On Monday, December 3, 2018 I went to see Beverley McLachlin, the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, being interview by Rachel Giese at the Appel Salon in Toronto. You know it will be a good interview when Rachel Giese is asking the questions. Not only is she always well prepared but she always seems genuinely interested in the person she's interviewing.
It was quite a different crowd that night at the Appel Salon to see the Former Chief Justice of Canada. Instead of the usual row after row of grey-haired women, that night there were lots of younger women with all different shades of hair colour. The colour of their hair may have varied but the one thing many of these young women had in common was that they were young female lawyers, and many others who were there seemed to be in that pursuit. Ms. McLachlin had such a poise. She was smart, funny, and confident and very meticulous as she spoke, obviously important qualities to have as a Supreme Court Judge.
My favourite story of the evening was about an event she attended with her son when he was a child. She had been talking to a young male lawyer who said that one day he'd like to be a judge. Without missing a beat, her young son looked up at him and said you can't be a judge only women can be judges. The Appel audience broke out into laughter followed by applause.
As the evening drew to a close many of us in the room lined up to get our books signed. I must admit I wasn't quite sure what to say to her but as I handed her my book to sign she said “what a nice name you have”. It certainly made standing in front of a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada for the first time a very pleasant experience.
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Coming soon to The Story Behind the Photo is Bobby Orr, Mitch Albom, Kamal Al-Solaylee, Diana Galbaldon, Terry Fallis, Judy Blume, Bryan Baeumler, Carol Shields (Anne and Nicholas Giardini), Nino Ricci, Kim Thuy, Ami McKay, Joseph Boyden, Elizabeth Strout and many more.
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When Clara Hughes steps in the room there is no mistaking it. She is tall, fit and has a smile that will light up the room. If there is still any doubt whether it really is her then her beautiful red hair will assure you it truly is Clara.
The first time I met Clara Hughes was at the 2016 taping of Canada Reads. She was one of five panelists and was defending Lawrence Hill’s book The Illegal. Clara came prepared as her book was peppered with yellow posted notes attached throughout the pages. When she spoke it was with passion and conviction. Not only was her defense based on passages in the book, but she was able to intertwine her own personal story into her defense. It was not at all surprising when The Illegal won Canada Reads 2016. At the end of each day's taping most of the panelist would stick around to meet members of the audience. It was on the second day of the competition that I got to meet Clara. At 5’9” she already towers over me, add heels and she is that much taller. However, when we had our picture taken you would never know there was such a height difference between us.
A few months later it was announced that Clara Hughes would be the speaker for the June Callwood lecture series at the Appel Salon (Toronto Reference Library). Not only is Clara an Olympian who has won six medals between the summer and winter Olympics, but she was also a national spokesperson for Bell Let's Talk Day and an advocate for mental health. In her book Open Heart Open Mind, she talks very candidly about her struggles with depression and the journey she has travelled. When she spoke that evening at the Appel she spoke with such raw emotion. At the end of her lecture she told everyone in the crowd that regardless if they had purchased her book they could come and say hi and get a hug. Since that evening I have spoken to several people who were there that night, and all agreed she was outstanding. They also recall her telling the crowd that it was not necessary that they purchased a book in order to come and say hi and get a hug. Obviously, an impactful moment for many.
I had purchased her book, so I lined up with the others to get it signed and with those in hope of a hug. Along with my book I had printed out the picture taken of the two of us at Canada Reads to also get it signed. When it was my turn Clara said she remembered me but apologized for not remembering my name. That was okay since I wasn't sure I had even told her my name before. She gladly signed both my book and add a special note when she signed my picture. Although I didn't get a hug, we did have another picture taken together.
Clara Hughes is not only an outstanding athlete but also a phenomenal woman. I am absolutely thrilled I've had the opportunity of meeting her not once but twice.
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Coming soon to The Story Behind the Photo is Bobby Orr, Mitch Albom, Kamal Al-Solaylee, Beverly McLachlin, Diana Galbaldon, Terry Fallis, Judy Blume, Bryan Baeumler, Carol Shields (Anne and Nicholas Giardini), Nino Ricci, Kim Thuy, Ami McKay, Joseph Boyden, Elizabeth Strout and many more.
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My name is Faith Van Wart, I’m a Certified Photo Manager and a member of The Photo Managers (formerly APPO Association of Personal Photo Organizers). I help people organize and digitize their printed photos so they can tell the stories behind their photos. Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to meet some interesting people and wanted to begin to share those photos and the stories behind them. I hope you enjoy photos and the stories. To learn more about how you can organize your photos be sure to check out my website Adventures-with-Photos.ca As the old saying goes every picture tells a story. If your photos could talk what stories would they tell? |