Camp 2

     For several years our eldest daughter has had the privilege of attending Zajac Ranch for Children. For those of you who don't know, it is an amazing place where kids of any age, with any disability or any medical issue are cared for and welcome. Having a daughter with epilepsy has been stressful but we have never worried about her at Zajac Ranch. In fact it was one of the few places where our daughter could be without us and we would feel confident. The camp counsellors, the nursing and administrative staff are all so in tune with children who need extra care. And while there the kids can swim, kayak, climb high ropes, ride horses, do crafts and archery, sing, dance and just be kids at camp. What a special place!
     We have been extra blessed by having the kind folks at The Center for Epilepsy and Seizure Education in B.C. help with our daughter's camp fees. Not only have these nice people given us encouragement to participate in Purple Day events, giving us seizure information brochures and other educational items to hand out but they have made it financially possible for our daughter to attend camp. We are so appreciative!
    As you can imagine there are not many benefits to having epilepsy but getting to know the generous people at Zajac Ranch and ESEBC are definite advantages. They are caring, compassionate folks who love children and want to see disabled kids have all the fun that typical kids do. They now have opened the camp to young adults with disabilities. And so our daughter arrived home today, tired but happy and full of stories of all the fun she had and the new people she met this week. It is a gift that she will carry with her always: happy memories of summer camp.... Thank you!

Photo Credit: Camp Zajac

Pray

     Religion and politics, two of the three topics we don't discuss because things will get heated or awkward or both and then what? However I would like to tell you that I am a big believer in the power of prayer. Of course prayer is different things to different people. Depending on your religion it can mean meditation, contemplation, supplication or hymns. There is empirical evidence which shows that a positive attitude, an uplifted focus on what you want, a release of that desire into the universe is more likely to be realised than a negative, unspoken or hidden one. Prayer can assist with mental and physical health as well. Clay Routledge wrote at length about this topic in the National Review published in April of last year.
     Part of the reason I believe in prayer is that my most fervent prayers have been answered. From the times when I was in trouble as a teenager to anaphylaxis and near death as a young adult, to the times I grieved multiple miscarriages and then for my daughters to be born and in good health my prayers have been granted. Since then for almost two decades I have daily prayed for the health and safety of our daughters, one of whom has epilepsy but who is now about two and a half years seizure free. My prayers for them and others have not stopped and probably never will. Prayer increases a sense of hope in my life and hope is a substance in short supply some days.
     Don't get me wrong, not all my prayers have been answered. All I know is that the big ones have been. And for that I am truly and perpetually grateful. And that is the other reason I pray: to express thanks for all the blessings in my life which have been so many!

"Prayer is, at root, simply paying attention to God." Dr. Ralph Martin

https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/04/what-prayer-is-good-for-and-the-evidence-for-it/

Drive

    Every once in a while I am ashamed of my species. Actually that happens quite often but that's a rant for another day. One of our daughters is learning to drive which means that my husband and I are being driven around our neighbourhood as often as possible by a new but enthusiastic and careful driver. I am saddened to report the number of times that she has been tailgated and/or sworn at for doing the speed limit. We have an L on our car which means that a learning driver is operating the vehicle. We live in a rural area which is close to a busy suburb but relatively quiet. The speed limit is 60 km per hour and she is going 60 or slightly over. Did I mention that we have an L on our car? I am shocked that people would take the time to pull around the vehicle, roll down the window and yell "F#&k you!" to a teenager while she is attempting this new, difficult and potentially dangerous task. I really am appalled.
    The driving courtesy that we experienced in places like Australia and Scotland was so exceptional. My husband felt like a new driver, driving an unfamiliar car on new roads, on the opposite side of the street in the seemingly wrong side of the car. But people were kind, courteous and patient, no matter how many times that we went around the roundabout. Why does it seem as if Canadian drivers are getting ruder and more impatient? Maybe our city is getting more crowded and our roads busier. Or perhaps I am just getting to be an old lady, one embarrassed by human beings who are giving the rest of us a bad name....

Confidence

     One of the regrets I have is that we did not know about Special Olympics or Challenger Baseball until our daughter was well into high school. These programs have been such a boost to our daughter's well-being: improved motor skills, fresh air and exercise, expanded social circles and the confidence acquired by learning to play sports such as baseball and basketball. I had no idea that the Special Olympics program included such a wide variety of sports and that they welcomed athletes of such varying abilities. These include bowling, swimming, gymnastics and power lifting to name just a few. The only prerequisite is a desire to play and a disability, whatever that may be. The wide age range of athletes in both programs allows my daughter to be friends with people older and younger than herself. She has the opportunity to improve her skills in a safe and caring environment without judgement. For example, seizures are common amongst athletes in both these programs and are handled with care for the health and dignity of the person.
     Volunteers make these programs what they are. The coaches are usually parents and these dads and mums are incredible. They give generously of their time and talents to encourage, teach and foster respect amongst all the athletes and coaches. The young people who volunteer in these programs are sometimes siblings of the various team-mates, sometimes not, and they too are amazing. They also give of their time and energy to assist either on an individual basis or as team helpers. This experience also adds to their skill set and looks great on their resume. And they have fun. We all have fun!
     I regret not knowing about these wonderful programs for kids with intellectual and/or physical disabilities sooner. As a parent I am hugely grateful for them and know that our daughter's life has been immeasurably positively impacted by them. Thank you all!

Move

     It's a chilly, cold night tonight and the yip-yipping of the coyotes, the smell and orange glow of the fire pit and the jewel-like sparkle of a million stars overhead belie the fact that I am in my own back yard. Ten minutes away is downtown White Rock. Not a bustling metropolis by any means but a nice place to live with beaches, fish and chip shops, parks and beautiful places to walk.
     Our property is a disorganized sprawl of five acres with giant evergreens and sporadic beds of our favourite perennials. Our home was once a barn and it's an interesting octagonal building of three stories with a salmon stream running out back and a couple of well-used ponds. Ducks love this spot. We have built raised beds for vegetables and we have our very own orchard with cherry and apple trees out front. Our taxes are kept down by raising chickens and selling their eggs. We have lived here for over fifteen years and they have been happy ones. Our children have played here, ridden horses here and had some wonderful birthday parties here. More recently our eldest ran her own sunflower stand all summer long. And my carpenter husband's love of wood in all it's many forms is here for all to see. Yes, there is wood everywhere. Everywhere.
     As much as we love this place, we might be looking at making a move. Our girls are at the age when it is important to develop some independence. Out here in the country there are no buses running and that can be isolating. Of course there's Mama's Taxi but that doesn't run always. Anyway, we are ready to see which way the wind blows: happy to stay, happy to go....either way, we'll make it work.

Legacy

      Almost six months after their beloved son was killed, his parents were successful in their pledge to change the intersection where the accident occurred. The vote by the Council of Government in San Luis Obispo was unanimous! For the most difficult six months of this family's life, they have worked tirelessly, endlessly, courageously to make sure that another son or daughter did not die where their cherished child died. This involved untold hours of flights back and forth, meetings, petitions, posts, phone calls and letters, with broken hearts and nights unslept, to try to fix an intersection in another state, fifteen hundred miles away. The passion and energy this must have taken cannot be imagined, at least by me. At a time when most people would want to stay in the safety of their homes mourning their loss, this family was out there making sure their voices were heard, that their son was remembered. I am in awe of them. Most people could not rouse the strength let alone the courage that this undertaking would require. But this is their son's legacy: love for family, for friends, for community, for humanity. Jordan's legacy is love.

Today is Purple Day!