2013 – A Year of Changes
It’s that time of year again, and with it comes the annual
reflection on the happenings of the family.
I did not send a letter last year, because I was sick on and off from
November onward. I thought I felt pretty
well on Christmas Day, but my stomach was not as ready for turkey dinner as my
mouth had been. The first months of 2013
followed the same pattern: a burst of
energy followed by a bout of illness.
Blood tests showed I was in a flare-up of polymyositis, so high doses of
prednisone were called on to bring it under control.
Life continued around me, of course. Katrina became engaged to Tyler Young at the
end of November 2012, so between second-year university courses and wedding
plans, we were very busy. Anthony began
the Aircraft Maintenance program at Okanagan College and Bronson finished his
grade 12 year with a high concentration of Math and Science courses.
By the time May rolled around, I was well enough to go back
to work at O’Keefe Ranch, which I love so much!
My mom was apprehensive about my physical ability to handle the work,
but I think the psychological benefit of doing what I love works wonders with
my health.
June was the month for both Anthony and Bronson to go
through their high school ceremonies. I
helped out with the after-grad, but kept out of their way (since we are
apparently at the stage where parents are embarrassing to have around). The bridal shower season began at the church
(there were at least 7 weddings among church families this summer). Katrina and I did wedding shopping and
crossing things off lists on our days off.
Anthony and Bronson also received perfect attendance awards for Grade 12
and Anthony received the top award for Art.
Grad 2013 - Karen, Katrina, Anthony, Bronson, Marcel
July was proceeding nicely toward Katrina’s wedding on the
20th – busy, but productive.
However, an unexpected fall at work left me with a fractured right femur
five days before the wedding. The
wedding countdown changed for me, as I had surgery the next night, spent a day
recovering from anaesthetic, practicing getting to the washroom with a walker
and sitting upright in a chair.
July 20th arrived and I was transported by
wheelchair taxi to Mackie Lake House for the outdoor ceremony. My sister, Shelley, made sure I was wheeled
where I needed to be, since the boys were groomsmen and Marcel had “father of
the bride” duties. Katrina’s face lit up
with joy when she saw that I had arrived.
But her face glowed as Marcel escorted her to her groom, Tyler. We were blessed with a warm sunny day with a
view of Kalamalka Lake behind the wedding party. The reception reflected Katrina and Tyler’s
love for the first meal of the day, with a “breakfast for dinner” buffet,
topped off with cupcakes frosted with sunflowers. I was whisked away by wheelchair taxi at 8:30
pm and returned to the hospital smiling, but exhausted.
Tyler and Katrina Young, Marcel,
Anthony, Karen, and Bronson
Two days later, I was back at home. WorkSafe BC provided equipment to make things
easier for me, as well as personal care workers until I was able to shower
alone. Marcel moved a single bed
downstairs for me, so I feel like I am in the centre of most of the action of
the household (or is that the eye of the hurricane?) and near everyone. Mom came over daily and made breakfast for me
– I was both blessed and spoiled.
Katrina finished work at the public library and Tyler at the
music store at the end of the summer.
They moved to Surrey for school in September: Katrina working toward her goal of becoming a
French teacher at SFU and Tyler studying toward a degree in worship music at
Pacific Life Bible College. They have a
basement suite furnished with their lovely wedding gifts. Katrina is also working part-time as a tutor.
Anthony continued his Aircraft Maintenance course this
fall. He is finding it quite intense. The
minimum passing grade is 70%, so we get on his case when he comes home with a
grade in the low 90s. “What? 93%?
You better pull up your socks, boy!”
Seriously, he is doing very well. In March 2014 he will complete the program
with a few months at Northern Lights College in Dawson Creek. He hopes to work on helicopters after
graduation.
Bronson began his UBC-O studies in September, with English,
History, Physics, Calculus, and Computer Programming. His goal is computer programming. He is finding the workload heavy, but was
well-prepared for the math and science courses by his grade 12 high school
teachers. Having a mom who majored in
English and History is also somewhat helpful.
Both boys (are they still boys? 18 year old males. Sons.) are still working on weekends at
Tolko’s White Valley division, doing clean up and fire watch. They have both been able to buy (used) cars
and are enjoying the independence an N license gives them. We were very proud that each of them earned a
bursary from the Steelworkers Union this fall.
Marcel also works weekends as a millwright at this plant and has worked
quite a few overtime hours this year, while still finding time for a fishing
trip most weeks during spring and summer.
While I was unable to climb stairs for a time, I resumed
knitting and produced outfits for the baby showers for new moms at our
church. Once I had learned to navigate
stairs with crutches, I got back to the sewing machine and finished projects
for bridal shower gifts. Our quilting
group resumed in the fall, and I was thrilled to be able to attend the quilting
retreat put on by ladies from our church.
Quilting, knitting, and a round of appointments with doctors make up
much of my life. I am going to have
further surgery because the bone growth needs to be stimulated.
So that’s my story for 2013 and I’m sticking to it. Wishing you a blessed and peaceful Christmas
season with those you love.
