June 1st – I look around and ask myself just where did the first 6 months of the year go? How did this 6 months pass so quickly? I keep saying to myself I must write in my journal or post in my blog so today I will blog.
There have been so many things happening in the past 6 months I don’t really know where to start. My brother in law had a major health scare in January with a ruptured bowel. Things were very touch and go for a bit there. I am delighted to report he is doing extremely well and even back riding his motorcycle. Then 2 weeks ago, his wife, my sister (in law) became suddenly very ill – on a ventilator, dialysis, multiple system infections – but today she smiled and opened her eyes. She is having a tracheotomy today to remove the vent. I can only hope and pray that she is on the upside of this scare. Please say a prayer if you are so inclined – thank you 🙂
In March I was down in LA with our eldest daughter who was doing an egg donation. While yes, this was a nice get away for mother and daughter, it did have some issues around her health and the donation. One point that was evident was that the egg donors don’t get the same treatment as the IP (intended parents). The IPs are able to read the bio and health information of the egg donor yet the donor had little or no say about who her eggs should be donated to. This is something that needs to change. Another point is that the doctor was in a conflict of interest in my thinking as she was taking care of the IPs AND the egg donor. So was she really taking care of our daughter or using her medical knowledge to push for a large donation? – of which there was (50 eggs, 43 mature and 39 fertilized). Venice Beach was an enjoyable afternoon as was the Hollywood Star Walk of Fame.
April was some charity work for the local “Our Place” where some of us nurses got together and served breakfast to those less fortunate. I also collected items that the homeless could use and was donated. For the women we filled gently used purses with items they could us and for the men we stuffed socks. It was very gratifying. I did the purse/socks at Christmas time 2015 and plan on doing it again in the fall. My dad turned 79 and is still doing well, he keeps busy with the local play company making sets and the local artifacts site where he also runs the model trains.
The month of May saw me continuing to do nurse advocacy work with Nursing Week and the Day at the Legislature in Victoria with the BC Coalition of Nursing Associations. It was a great week and fabulous connecting with other nurses from around the province. I also was an elected delegate attending the BCNU annual convention where we do the business of the union. It was a very busy week in Vancouver. I also helped out at a bottle drive for the pre-school where our youngest daughter is a teacher. One of the little boys, 4 yrs old, was recently diagnosed with leukemia and is having treatment at Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. The bottle drive raised close to $1,000.00 which will help the family with their expenses. We also had a terrific although short, visit with our very close East Coast friend. Hubby was his best man almost 21 years ago!! His visit was too short but we covered a lot in that time!
May was also Mother’s Day where I was treated to a wonderful day. Our son and his son ( 6 1/2 yo) took Gramma on a wonderful picnic lunch and walk in the woods. Then I was treated to a Skype with our Ontario daughter, followed by a visit from our middle daughter who is in year 3/4 of the RN program and her wee son (who is now almost 18 months old), and our daughter who is here at home. It was an awesome day. I am blessed to have 2 women in my life for Mother’s Day – one who gave birth to me and the other who raised me. Both xtra special ladies that I am truly blessed & thankful for.
Hubby is getting ready to head out on a bike road trip to the Interior for the weekend while I will be working. It will be good for him 🙂 The garden is growing with carrots, celery, squash, potatoes, cukes, spinach, rhubarb, strawberries and weeds. The weeds seem to be the hardiest! The pool is ready to have the ladder dropped in and floaties inflated.
That was a fast six months. There has been lots happening – laughter, tears, hugs and blessings. Things can change in but an instant. Please remember that. Make sure your parting words are ones you won’t regret should something unforeseen happen. Let people know you care – even if from a distance. A quick email or text can make their day. Also please remember the invisible challenges people can be facing – depression, PTSD, isolation, bi-polar, and many other mental health issues. So maybe someone did a dumb move but perhaps they are dealing with recent bad news, or loss of some kind. We all need to be kinder to each other because we can.
Wishing you peace and blessings,
Until next time,
