Farewell

For those readers who are not close to the family this final post is to inform you of the sad news that Roger (my Dad) lost his courageous battle with cancer during the morning of Saturday 1st March 2014.

If anyone reading is not aware, Roger had quite a bit of history with his health over the last 15 years. Most recently in 2011, Melanoma was discovered in a part of his upper back. Unfortunately the discovery came too late and while a series of operations and treatments were attempted, the disease soon spread to his internal organs including his brain.

Roger summarised his experience in the entry The Spanish Dancer from August 2013. I remember feeling pretty upset the first time I read this though I didn't tell him I had seen it. Today I found myself re-reading it and finding myself a bit upset again though I'm also reminded of something that makes me smile.

The leave pass he spoke of in the last sentence was spent with Jarrad (his other son) and I whizzing him away from the Royal Adelaide Hospital and up into the Adelaide Hills for lunch, drinks and a chat at the Inglewood Inn. We followed this up with a stroll around the Birdwood Motor Museum - a place he always loved and that we often spoke about over the years. I remember he was buzzing like a kid that day having been stuck inside the hospital for several weeks prior, excited by this temporary freedom and telling us stories about the "bogan" who had been caught with beer in the next bed the previous night. It was a great day which I'll always remember fondly.

After spending a few hours checking out the museums collection of all things automotive, Jarrad dropped me home and continued on with Roger to the RAH. I remember that no sooner had I stepped in the door than I received a very worried call from one of the nurses demanding to know what I had done with their patient. Apparently he was supposed to be back by 5:00pm and we had broken curfew.

The following day and over lunch at the Arab Steed I bought this up and asked if he had gotten into any trouble for arriving back late. He told me how the nurse had eventually managed to track him down on his mobile while still with Jarrad, only for him to inform her he had skipped town to Melbourne! I came to realise that playfully taking the piss out of the nurses was something he did a fair bit of while in hospital.

That playful side of his personality comes through to me in a lot of his writing.

I know that Roger really enjoyed sharing his thoughts via this blog and twitter and while he had strong and often provocative ideas and opinions his posts were always delivered with flair and the sharp wit which those who knew him well came to expect.

The more I think about it the more I realise how glad I am to have access to this record of my Dads thoughts during the last several years. While I now have an offline copy too, its my intention that these words of his will remain here as long as possible so those of us who wish to can use them to reflect on this time in his life.

Thank you,

Luke Wegener

luke.wegener@gmail.com