Kaja - Dad Memorial

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Kaja Kallas's Post
Kaja Kallas
16h ·
Dear Father, for the last 25 years you have had a prayer for the great jubilees that I should speak. Because then you have the opportunity to refuse all the speakers, because in your opinion, the speeches given on the jubilees are usually not about the jubilee, but about how the speaker feels about the jubilee and then about the speaker himself, and all this takes too much time. But you wanted to go to dancing, eating, drinking and partying quickly. So you established a rule on your jubilees that only you and I can give speech. But today we have no reason to party, and I'm sure you'd have loved listening to people talk about you so much good. But as we've had a deal, I'm trying to do my part.
When the news of your departure became public, my brother and I received a lot of messages with the content that your father was a great man. An important man. You were, you did a lot for Estonia. And we are so proud of you. You were behind many important decisions and events that have affected Estonian life. The proposal of an independently managed Estonia, the Estonian kroon, the abolition of corporate income tax, etc. But for me and my brother, you were first and foremost a father. That's a good father. A good person through and through. You can't choose your parents, but my brother and I are crazy lucky.
You have always had a very positive attitude towards people. In general, you trusted people, unless the opposite was proven. Thanks to this, you had many friends and good acquaintances. From time to time, you were also burned when someone abused your trust, but your principle was that there is much more to gain from trusting people than you suspect everyone. So you had friends and acquaintances of different ages, from different fields and different nationalities. You and your brother and I taught us from an early age that all people should be treated with respect. Positions, jobs, positions come and go, but who you are as a person stays. And you were a great example to us in this regard.
In addition to new acquaintances, you taught you to keep those friends who have been by your side throughout your life. So did you and your mother had a university-time group of friends who still go tight together. This group of friends was awake and always ready to argue and discuss the nodes of society, but the parties were no less important.
You've always loved to party. If there was anything to celebrate, it was to be celebrated. Your joy of life infected everyone. All birthdays, wedding anniversaries and other anniversaries were celebrated in our family with a large group of people and parties. You were always ready to go along with different adventures and you liked to organize them yourself. Be it a bicycle trip from Viljandi to Tartu for the wedding anniversary, my birthday orienteering competition in crazy rain or even a ufo-themed anniversary of my brother only 2 years ago, where you and your mother did not have to come much dressed as aliens.
See iseenda mitte-liiga-tõsistelt võtmine ja huumorimeel on midagi, mis aitas Sind läbi elu. Nalja sai meil alati palju. Ja mitte ainult pidudel. Sa võisid alati visata mingi suvalise vimka. Näiteks kirjutasid üks kord meili alla „Siim E.Kallas“. Kui küsisime, mis „E“ see nüüd on, teatasid, et see on Su artisti nimi 🙂. . Once upon a time, there was a gathering with the neighbors in Püünsi, to which the neighbors had also invited distant relatives. It was very nervous that Siim Kallas is coming. The neighbors reassured that oh no, do not be afraid, Siim is a very simple person. But you decided to make a joke and enter the party in the frac, wearing all your orders. It took a long time for poor guests to recover and realize that they are still a “simple” person.
We always knew we had a very smart father. But you never betrayed your knowledge. Curiosity for the whole world was preserved for the rest of your life. You were always ready to read or explore new things and make yourself clear. The preparation of your lectures at the University of Tartu was fully enjoyed and it was not uncommon for you to call in the process, “Hey, look what I thought, maybe you could benefit from it”. I really wanted to listen to your lectures because the material was so exciting. The youthful group of students suited you very well.
You also passed on to us the fatherly teachings we need for life. For example, you said that during university, a friend had suggested that if you were drunk, take a lace of old Tallinn with cream, it would sober up. The life experience you shared with us was that don't try, it doesn't work.
Due to curiosity and due to the coincidence of circumstances, you ended up doing the Mnemo Tournament. At that time, almost everyone was listening to this show. There were funny things about this, where people asked you about all sorts of things. What you liked the most was the example where a gentleman came to you in a random café and asked, “Well, tell me, what is the “Star” tirage?” (To your partner’s surprise, you even knew that.) So far, they regularly prepared memory game questions and tested them on us. You say it's a good question in a quiz, not what no one knows the answer to, but the one that people could finally come up with in the course of the discussion. Before the Internet, you were our “internet” to ask for everything. You had a tremendous amount of reading and thus a huge amount of knowledge. For example, you could never joke about “what is the first name of Alzeimer? – I don’t know-...well, that’s where it starts...” because you knew right away that Alzeimer’s first name was Alois 🙂. .
Despite your knowledge, you didn’t think life has anything to teach you. Quite the opposite. You really followed the principle that a person learns all his life. At a late age, they adopted the French language and clarified the issue of climate change. There were also things you didn't think it was necessary to learn, I think the bigger thing was a handyman you weren't. The skirting boards in our apartment in Mustamäe were not laid for years.
You never said you had a monopoly of truth, but you were listened to. You had a rare ability to listen to others. Attentively, attentively and in real life. That's why so many people came to you with their concerns and asked for advice. Of course, I was very lucky, because walking in your footsteps, you were the only person who really knew the reefs that this profession entails and knew how to refer to the dangers that the young politician did not notice at all. Thanks to your advice, I have not made a few mistakes.
But you always gave advice, saying that I don't know everything to the end and the responsibility is still yours. You have to make the decision yourself. You were a liberal through and through. This was expressed in our little way in honoring our wishes. You and Mom never put us on the path you chose. (At least not so that my brother and I understood that 🙂. . You believed in the rights and freedoms of all people, and you acted for it yourself. When I started thinking about participating in politics, your first reaction was, “ahsoo, but what kind of party are you thinking of joining?”
You have said that your views were greatly influenced by Coudenhove-Kalerg’s book “Total State. Total person”, but you can’t get past your family’s influences. Your mother was a true Estonian-era lady, and that's what you carried on. Therefore, the continuation of Estonian culture and language was considered crucial. Every Christmas Eve, you received new poems about the treasure trove of Estonian poets (mainly Betti Alver) and our younger ones often had to knock our eyes off that we were still repeating year-olds year after year. You were also very respectful of the theatre and respected good music. Be it all the premieres of the Estonian National Opera that you and your mother watched or the productions of various Estonian small theatres that you highly appreciated or the concerts of ENSO, where you were regular guests. The transfer of history to future generations through theatre art has been so important to you that you and your mother have established a foundation that has been supporting the interpretation of Estonian history in theatre for almost 20 years.
You were a living embodiment of Gustav Suits's saying that let us remain Estonians, but let us also become Europeans. I remember well how at first you didn't want to go to Brussels as an Estonian commissioner, but working in the middle of Europe suited you so well. All this culture of European countries, different nationalities, exciting challenges. My brother and I laughed at how, in front of our eyes, you became a respected gentleman of Central Europe, who did not have complexes due to the back of Eastern Europe.
When you had also gained experience living and working abroad, when you returned, you announced that you were now going to retire and write a book. We'll see, we thought. And we did – you didn’t have that persistence to retire. After returning, the deputy mayor of Viimsi municipality, the deputy chairman of the Riigikogu, added their CV to their CV. Positions of Chairman of the European Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu and members of the Riigikogu. And building good teams and making new friends everywhere.
Next to all this, you were always there for your family. Your first priority was always Mom. Today, it is relatively rare for people to be together for 56 years, 54 of them married. Looking at the pictures of your youth, the superficial observer may wonder what my beautiful mother found in such a thread. But the mother has said that she was fascinated by the respect and love you talked about with your parents. You have written two books about your grandfather and family, which show pride and love for their roots. Family was very important to you. But still in that order – first the mother and only then the children and grandchildren. I remember well when, trembling my soul, I came to tell you that I was moving out. I imagined how you would say it early and try to talk me out of it. But you looked at Mom and said, “Very good. Let’s make Kaja’s room a library.” 🙂. . Your love mother's response shone through everything. From time to time, you kept saying your mother looked damn good 🙂. .
The family has always been very tight. If it’s been hard for one or the other, we have a mantra “that’s going, how it goes, we still love you.” And it gives a lot of strength in difficult moments. I know that we were able to give you strength in difficult moments, too, because you have said for yourself that the strong rear of the family has given you the courage to take unprecedented risks.
My brother and I watched the ETV show “Starship” made 20 years ago and there you are asked if there is anything that you have not done or what else you would like to do. And you say I want to write a book. After that, you managed to publish 5 books, writing the 6th, which you couldn't wait to publish. I'm so glad you didn't really miss anything you wanted to do. If you look at your CV, it seems that you had a lot more years than the actual number indicates. You wanted to live and you knew how to live, and you lived a beautiful life where there were so many people who had achieved, but also so many nice people, joy, jokes, love.
It is said that a person lives until his memory lives. There are many people who remember you. So you're gonna live on, even though you can't call you and you can't be hugged anymore. Good easy way for you to go, dear father.
All reactions:
20K
Riina Uibopuu
Wonderful, wonderful sweet speech, about your father!❤️16hRaul Tammaru
A spectacular and memorable TV broadcast of the funeral ceremony was watched by a famous politician -
Siim Kallas (1948 - 2026) at the Estonia Concert Hall.
Finally, there were some great holes of glory when the carnaist moved from Estonia to the next stops.
I lit a candle in memory before the TV broadcast started and thoughtfully watched it all.
There were many people to send away and everyone had their memories and memories.
The condolences to the next of kin and the background will be Arvo Pärt's "Da pacem Domine", then the Estonian national anthem, i.e. everything is as prescribed by the protocol in the case of such send-offs.
Speeches and obituaries were kept - one more beautiful than the other and accompanied by the beautiful melodies of ENSO ("Solveig song, "Õhtulul", Koduine Viise") and a well-known song "Reflection" performed by the soloist of the Estonian National Opera - Tamar Nugis.
An honorable Estonian of a dignified age -
Arne Mikk's thoughts and what he said.
"When the heart stops,
time stops.
Space is getting roomless.
Everything goes away from the distance of speech"...
/Kalju Lepik/
This obituary of close family members was one of the most touching moments of yesterday's spectacular and memorable funeral ceremony.
Thoughts long enough and very well written about his father, or great statesman, Siim Kallas.
Although it is not an obligation for children to read it themselves while fighting with tears in front of the sarga, the talented actress Helena Lotman managed to do it in a very expressive way.
As many of us have no previous experience in organising such funeral ceremonies, because they are very rare in our country and only in exceptional cases are the television channels of the Estonian Public Broadcasting broadcaster broadcast.
The last time it was in the winter of 2025, when there was a farewell to President Arnold Rüütel.
I also remember the TV broadcasts of maestro Eri Klas (in 2016), President Lennart Meri (in 2006) and the songbook Gustav Ernesaks about sending him away from the Estonia Concert Hall in 1993.
The older generation may also remember some kind of TV broadcasts from the sending-off of opera singer Georg Ots and grand master Paul Keres in the mid-seventies?!
Although many of us did not yet have a TV at home at that time, and they went to see it either with acquaintances or somewhere in the electronics store with a few memorable shots.
The festive funeral ceremony will be memorable for a long time and I remember when my father died, he was sent away from the University of Tartu Hall in autumn 1992.
There were guards of honour and the police closed traffic in the downtown area of Tartu, so that the funeral procession could move to the cemetery, accompanied by a column of cars.
So he was...
Rest in peace and memories!16hTop fan
Ruth Remets
ISA-maailma jaoks vaid üks mees,kuid lapse jaoks on ta terve maailm. Väga siiras kõne oli.15hLembit Tampere
Hea Kaja,
mina Sinu isa ei tundnud, kahju, mitte, et Tähtsat Meest ei teadnud, vaid nii toredat isa ja tegelast tunda olnuks suur rõõm.
I just want to express my condolences on the loss of my dear father and say, be safe, protected and loved.
P.S. You wrote a beautiful speech.16hMerike Veider
I cried at home, listened and watched the send-off. For me, a great Estonian statesman has left. I spoke to my father – we both were reformers, he also agreed that the great statesman went. Somehow Siim Kallas was like a part of us, Estonia, he was there all the time, this slightly whimsy way of speaking and optimism and his wisdom, I do not remember a single time when I have heard him either in broadcasts, interviews, in some speeches- so that he could not answer or did not know anything... a really smart and read man. And he didn't humiliate anyone, he didn't curse fate and bad weather and horrible life and so on... he was always positive. If it wasn't for him and many others, I don't know if we'd be where we are. I'm really sorry, I could have lived, written. And listening to the show on Vikerraadio with Ülo and listening to Kaja's obituary, it was very close to my heart that you loved your husband Kristi and her children so much! It makes a man the right man! Thank you and I will remember! 🥀🇪🇪14hMarge Sophie Vinkelberg
Wonderful appeal to your father. It was an honor to be on the way of the great man, which was so cordial and dignified. The daughter's letter to her father moved to the core of her soul, it perfectly combined the dynamics of the whole Kallas family, their values and principles, above all, in terms of saving and loving each other's conditions. Thank you, Kristi, Kaja and Ülo🤍❤️15hRobert Tomingas
Not a man like an orchestra, but a man like the Internet - really knew a lot! Very sweet speech - probably every father's dream that his children will remember him similarly in this way. 🫶🏾16hKristjan Koppel
Heartfelt condolences to the whole family. Very beautiful and heartfelt words about his father – it glows through how important he was not only to Estonia, but above all to his family. May all these common moments and memories be with you. 🕯️16hSirli Olde
Such a beautiful obituary. Deepest compassion.16hTerje Tartu
My sincere condolences! The obituary is so warm and so touching. Of course, we all come from our children's rooms, so — it is natural that the daughter of a father with such values writes such a sweet obituary. A deep bow and thanks to him for his entire life's work!16h