Remembering Murray Dryden

Ken Dryden could be Canada's prime minister one day. Some say: "Please, and soon."
At the moment, he's the federal Social Development Minister, which doesn't surprise anyone; for he is actually following in his father's footsteps -- that of caring for people.
The quiet, articulate former NHL goaltending great, lawyer, best-selling author, filmmaker, hockey executive, turned politician was credited with saving Paul Martin's troubled Liberal government from extinction with some sage advice in recent days. Martin adopted Dryden's words by promising Canadians a federal election once the sponsorship inquiry tabled its report.
However, Dryden is much more comfortable behind the scenes; and abhors the loud mouths, which, seemingly roar, daily in the halls of Ottawa's Parliament Buildings.
As a CP story points out , Dryden, who has a far-reaching plan for universal child care, is a man of vision with child-care centres eventually becoming community hubs. As for the cost of such an idea, Dryden would sooner leave that to the bean-counters.
And as for seeking the PM's job, he told the reporter, in his methodical manner, "I don't know. I didn't know I could write, I didn't know I could play in the NHL ... You find out."
As for his deep social concerns, Ken, learned those from his father -- D. Murray Dryden.
Both the Missus and myself had the privilege of being with the senior Dryden on a number of occasions in his Toronto-area home, where after pointing out where his sons, Ken and Dave, learned their goaltending skills in the small backyard pond, he would take people on a tour of the crowded Sleeping Children Around the World "headquarters." A number of volunteers would always be scurrying around as Mr. Dryden told of his humanitarian efforts, in a quiet and forthright manner.
A SCAW website best tells his story: "Murray was born on a farm in Domain, Manitoba, in 1911 and knew the meaning of hard work and a loving family. After leaving home during the Depression years, like many others, Murray found it difficult to find work.
"He became a door-to-door peddler, subsisting on whatever little cash he could make. While travelling East, many nights he slept in train stations as he rode the rails from one town to another. He learned then what it was to be deprived of a good night's sleep.
"In 1932, Murray found work in Hamilton, Ontario, selling plant food, and it there that he met Margaret Campbell in 1938. In 1948, the Drydens moved to Etobicoke when Murray began selling building materials, and here they raised their three children. During the 1950s, Murray pursued a hobby in photography. One night he was particularly taken by the peaceful pose of his sleeping daughter, Judy, and took her photo. This led to a desire to photograph more and more children as they slept.It was his hope to publish a coffee-table book.
"One night while travelling in India, Murray tripped over a child sleeping on the street. A man of ideas, he decided that he must and would do something for children who had no comfortable bed. He couldn't feed the world, or alleviate hunger, but he believed a good night's sleep could make a hungry child's life more comfortable.
"Murray was a champion for children in developing countries, primarily because they have no welfare system, no Medicare, and often little or no hope for a future. Thus, with a strong desire to help others and a firm belief that with God nothing is impossible, Sleeping Children Around The World was begun in 1970, with a distribution of 50 bedkits in Pune, India.
"Murray and Margaret devoted their retirement lives to this program, initially hoping to raise $1 million. After this was achieved, Murray set a new goal of 1 million bedkits.
"One of Murray's favourite quotes was "There is nothing more peaceful that a sleeping child."
Even though Murray Dryden died on February 1, 2004 in his 93rd year, Sleeping Children Around the World continues its tremendous work even today. (Phone: 416-231-1841)

FAMILIAR PHRASES: To Close Ranks -- Meaning: To present a united front. Origin: "In the old-time European armies, the soldiers were aligned side by side, in neat rows, or ranks, on the battle. When the enemy attacked, officers would order the troops to close ranks; that is, to move the rows close together, so that the enemy faced a seemingly impregnable mass of men." (From Fighting Words, by Christine Ammer)
SO WHAT ABOUT: Beyond the Pale -- Meaning: Socially unacceptable. Origin: "The pale in this expression has nothing to do with the whitish color, but comes originally from the Latin palus, meaning a pole, or stake. Since stakes are used to mark boundaries, a pale was a particular area within certain limits." The pale that inspired this expression was the area around Dublin in Ireland. Until the 1500s, that area was subject to British law. "Those who lived beyond the pale were outside English jurisdiction and were thought to be uncivilized." (From Getting to the Roots, by Martin Manser)
THEN THERE'S MY FAVORITE: I've Got A Frog In My Throat -- Meaning: I'm hoarse from a cold. Origin: Surprisingly, this wasn't inspired by the croaking sound of a cold-sufferer's voice, but by a weird medical practice. "In the Middle Ages," says Christine Ammer in It's Raining Cats and Dogs,"infections such as thrush were sometimes treated by putting a live frog head first into the patient's mouth; by inhaling, the frog was believed to draw out the patient's infection into its own body. The treatment is happily obsolete, but its memory survives in the 19th-century term frog in one's throat."