Gordon Robinson (4 Dec 1935 - 15 Dec 2023)

Once upon a time,
Half a world away.
An English nobleman,
Decided he would pay.

For himself and many others,
To fly across the sea.
The destination was Australia,
To visit extended family.

It was garbage bags of chocolates,
That he would gift us as a child.
Yet this present was the best,
Adult fun was much more wild.

For the first time in a decade,
Hugged by cousin, uncle, and aunty.
This generous English nobleman,
Then taught us how to party.

His unconditional love,
Expressed in so many ways.
From birthday cakes to party tricks,
Enough tax-free booze to last for days.

From drunken noisy garden parties,
To the German beer Schutzenfest.
The live band on stage were loud as hell,
Yet below our nobleman took a rest.

Before the Oz adventure finished,
All family members turned into friend.
Our hearts full of love and gratitude,
We vowed this would never be the end.

With new memories overflowing,
Our tummy’s sore from constant laughter.
So many family ties reconnected,
We couldn’t guess what would come after.

This English nobleman’s example,
Elevated all family bonds.
Our family tree was no longer a tree,
More like a fern with many fronds.



Our English nobleman is humble,
Although once a councillor in York.
His name is Gordon Robinson,
And oh boy! could he ever talk.

He inspired more family connections,
Stronger and deeper relationships were made.
Between family members near and far,
Sharing their hopes, lives, and escapades.

Unintended legacy established,
A solid die that he had cast.
His generous heart, soul, and acceptance,
Towards all our family will forever last.

It matters not to Gordon,
What crosses each we have the bare.
He’ll offers a helping hand to lift you,
Show you support and loving care.

He instantly offered up a home,
To us Aussie visitors from abroad.
He made us cry from laughter,
Made it impossible to be bored.

The first time my husband met him,
He was speaking with ‘the Queen’.
His housing offer made us visit Scotland,
A country neither of us had been.

Gordon’s warmth, love and generosity,
Is something that he couldn’t feign.
His desire to spend time with loved ones,
Even if in a museum full of trains.

So let me speak quite plainly now,
Gordon, you will be dearly missed by us all.
Our family’s stronger because of you,
For that you should stand proud and tall.

Your unconditional love for family,
Is a lesson that will not perish.
The memories we all have with you,
Is something we will always cherish.

Half a world away we send our love,
Will laugh and cry at memories had.
You are more than a great-uncle to us,
You embodied a real great grand-dad.


Those that know will be more than happy to share the funny memories spoken about in this poem. Those that do not know will most likely never really understand the efforts Gordon went to that resulted in cousins from other family tree branches considering themselves as just 1st cousins. How feeling a belonging to this this family was not always a given. It wasn’t until I was in my mid 20’s that I even realised Gordon was not my uncle but my mums. He was certainly ever present in my childhood memories as an uncle. I didn’t even realise my uncle Colin wasn’t my 1st uncle but my mum’s cousin. That type of family centred loyalty, love, compassion, playfulness, undiluted desire to uplift every family member to become their best selves…I cannot imagine it is common even today.
For me being isolated in Australia before the internet existed, Gordon’s visit with an entourage of family changed my life. Since then, I have hosted aunties, uncles, cousins and the offer to continue to do so, even extended to their children when grown always stands, is known and reciprocated and all know it.
Gordon taught me that family is not a direct genetic line, it is not just a sharing of an uncomfortably big and often crooked roman nose, it is an embracing of love for those in our present, linked via ancestral or shared pasts, but with a supportive future that focuses on belonging, fun, acceptance. We are all in this life together, placements do not matter. Be generous with each other, share your time because it does not last forever, memories don’t last forever, but actions do…..and sometimes they create a global legacy…even for just a special few.