Erle
Montaigue 1949-2011
Local legend and international hero.
The 26th of January 2011 was a good day, a loving father and husband
spent the morning playing music with his daughter, and training with son in
taiji. After lunch it was time to walk the dogs, Erle sent his wife son and
daughter on ahead as he still had one last thing to put down on the latest song
he was recording. We were half way back down the hill when we saw him running
up to us, we sent the dogs running down to greet him tails wagging. He joined
us and we chatted about nonsense, he was happy and smiling. He had come to a
place in his life he could find peace. his music may not be selling 1000s of
copies but in the last year he saw a change in his children, a flame too great
to be extinguished, a flame that his music had put in their hearts, and brought
to them the same love and enjoyment he found in his music.
In his son he saw a
great leader had been born, and the 24 years of training they did together made
him confident the world taiji boxing association would not only survive but
flourish under his reign.
in his family he saw the love and the bond between us, he knew he loved us well
enough that we wouldn’t regret not having heard him say “I love you” or not
having held him for longer, because we did hold him for longer, and we heard
the words I love you in every smile, and every kiss, and every note he played.
So when god came knocking on that Wednesday afternoon and asked “is there
anything more you wish from life?” I can only imagine the smile on his face and
the shake of his head as he answered “nothing at all”
There were mere seconds
between the time we realised something was wrong and him being unconscious on
the road side. I took my brothers phone and called down to Ben, our other
brother who was only just down the road, all he would have heard is me scream
“run” down the phone, he knew where we were and could hear the dogs barking, he
was there in minutes.
Dad died there on the road, I felt our hearts double in size in those last
moments with him. As I held my brother it was plain to see even to the sheep
and horses in the nearby fields, the power of our love is greater than time or
distance, it is eternal, and it is holding us up now and forever.
Erle Montaigue was
cremated on the 3rd of February 2011, in Llanelli. His three
youngest children, wife and Girlfriend to son Ben didn’t say much, nothing
needed to be said, as he sang his way to heaven.
Even the priest wasn’t
shocked to hear that there would be no church funeral with sermons and black
attire for this man. So on the 19th of February a gig in celebration
of his life was filled with his family and friends. Playing songs we had played with him since we
were children, Eli stepped in as lead male vocalist, and the question was asked
“did Erle jump into his body for the night?” his voice uncannily similar to his
Dad, if we closed our eyes it didn’t take much to know he was there in the
room.
For those who could not be there the finale song is enough to understand the
energy of the night, by the Doobie brothers Listen to the Music.
A special thank ‘you
to everyone who has come forward and offered any help they can, to the friends
who are holding us up.
To Adrian Jones who stepped in as Drummer for the songs Eli sang, great job we
couldn’t have done it without you.
To everyone present on the road side thank ‘you.
A very big thank ‘you to the Woman who helped with CPR, we don’t know who she
was or her name, to us she was just an angel sent to help.
And also sending our
love across the ocean to Dads first wife Cheryl, our brothers Erland and
Kristian, Erlands children Shantel and Braydan, and Shantels daughter Kimberley
(yes, Erle was a Great Grandfather!)
they were always in Dads thoughts, his love never weakened with distance.