Victoria 80-year-old wears different colour of rainbow every day to spread joy
It all began after Robin Jones bought a pair of yellow, zebra-striped shoes.
The all-yellow outfit he’s also wearing came after.
“I bought all white clothing,” the 80 year-old says. “And dyed every piece to match my shoes.”
Now, he has a whole collection of colourful shoes.
“And these are some of the rainbow clothes I dyed,” Robin says, opening a kaleidoscope-like closet, before revealing a drawerful of dynamic duds.
“Red, orange, pink, green, blue.”
Robin says he has outfits in eight different colours, so he can wear a different one every day.
“I’ve always been a fashionista,” Robin smiles, before showing pictures of himself wearing a plaid jacket as a child, and posing as a male model in his late teens.
Robin also worked as a cab driver, bartender and contractor before spending eight years as the primary caregiver for his wife Kit, after she was diagnosed with dementia.
“This is now her life,” Robin recalls thinking. “And I’m going to do things for her so that her life can be as comfortable as can be.”
Although that was the most challenging time of his life, Robin says it was also the most inspiring.
“The biggest thing you’ll ever learn is to love,” Robin says. “And be loved in return.”
And that’s why, when he lost his beloved Kit, and found those yellow shoes, Robin came-up with a plan to use his colourful clothes as a catalyst for connection.
“My job is to meet a new person every day,” Robin smiles.
Robin says he’s formed hundreds of friendships this way, which he often marks by offering them a silver dollar.
“It’s the fact that a total stranger has given them something unsolicited that makes them feel good,” Robin explains.
Robin maintains his friendships by writing the people appreciative poetry.
“He’s awesome,” Daniel Vokey says, after Robin reads him the latest poem he wrote about how wonderful his ‘Patisserie Daniel’ bakery is.
“He inspires joy,” Daniel says after giving a grateful hug, and saying how Robin always improves the mood of the other customers. “[He spreads] happiness and gratitude.”
After living 80 years, Robin says he’s learned that cultivating kindness is what life’s all about.
“And it feels good!” Robin says with a big laugh. “It’s not just for them. I love it!”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.