For John and Margaret it's love, actually
Valentine’s Day often celebrates romantic love that is magical but superficial. But if you are lucky – and work hard at it – this romantic love can grow into something profound and sustaining.
When we chat to Margaret Robertson at her home in Baptcare’s Strathalan Aged Care Community, it is her 92nd birthday. The conversation is constantly interrupted as she accepts phone calls from wellwishers, wanting to send back to her the love she has long sent out into the world.
Beside her is her husband John, almost 92. In July they will have been married for 65 years. They chat, laugh, and their love for each other is palpable.
Margaret grew up in Moonee Ponds and was active in the Essendon Baptist Church. John attended Glenbervie Baptist Church. They met at a social evening and have been inseparable since, through five children, multiple grandchildren and the inevitable ups and downs of life.
We celebrate their love for each other and their family – but special people also take that care and compassion and shine it out into the world.
Later this month we observe Founders Day at Baptcare, an occasion on which we celebrate the pioneers who started what is now Baptcare at Strathalan. John remembers visiting Strathalan for the first time just after Christmas 1949, with colleagues from the Glenbervie Baptist Men’s Society. The homestead then housed about twelve men and was surrounded by paddocks with sheep, cattle and abundant vegetable gardens.
It was a time of petrol rations, but they knew it was important to visit the older men who had started living at Strathalan. They sang hymns and choruses from the Sankey Book of Sacred Songs, delivered a devotional Bible message and made time to share food and a chat with residents.
This became a Sunday afternoon tradition for the next 42 years, attended by people from different Baptist congregations.
After a lifetime of reaching out to others, Margaret and John now live in Strathalan in what John describes as “this magnificent building.”
John points out that the foundation stone at the front of Strathalan reads ‘May All Who Come Here Find Welcome and Compassion.’ That is the true spirit of Baptcare, and a deep expression of love.
Valentine’s Day is not just for teenage romantics. It is a reminder that love takes many forms, it endures, and it reaches out. Happy Valentine’s Day, Margaret and John, and thank you for the love you bring to the world.
