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
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.