The holidays have come and gone. It was good for the soul, rejuvenating and exciting to be in Vancouver for 3 weeks. Vancouver was magnificient with its blue skies, fresh clean air and perfectly kept streets and sidewalks. The snow capped mountains were crispy white and added to the breath-taking panorama. We live in a beautiful city ! Living in the West End was a new, invigorating experience for our family. We enjoyed walking everywhere and enjoyed exploring this part of town. The shops and restaurants were abundant and the original and at times eccentric people we saw added to the charm of living downtown.
On New Year’s Eve as I watched the fireworks light up the Vancouver sky, I thought about my present situation. I love Vancouver, it is beautiful and it is right. Conakry is right. Go figure ! Somehow these two living realities juxtaposed made sense for me. Africa is right, feels right and is the place for me to be right now. It is not forever. I know I will come back to Vancouver eventually. I am just having an amazing and at times challenging African experience right now. Somehow I needed to make that clear for myself. During my first days back in my city, I was tugged at the heart strings as I was plunged back into the reality of living in Vancouver. « Why am I living in Africa? » crept into my mind often. I was enjoying being with my kids, visiting with friends and enjoying the healthy nature walks. « Why not stay in Vancouver, it is much easier? » a little voice inside of me nudged.
Life in Canada is good. Life is so easy. Life is organized. The choices one has are so abundant that it can be mind blogging. I thoroughly enjoyed walking everywhere and not have to worry about stepping on garbage and razor blades or trip on a jagged sidewalk. I had places to explore, unlimited window shopping and wonderful friends to spend time with. Three highlights remain :
New Year’s Eve was spent playing a fun board game called The Settlers of Catan with our children . We had a great time, laughing and teasing each other throughout the game. At the stroke of midnight, as the first fireworks shot through the sky, Raymond proudly announced : Victory ! and won the game. It was so funny and a propos that he won the game at that precise moment. I thought "this is a winning year for him" !
The second highlight of my Vancouver holiday was meeting with Olaf’s parents. Olaf is my good friend and my kidney recipient. We will always have a very special bond him and I, some connection that has no words to explain fully. His parents recently immigrated to Vancouver from Poland. The rendez-vous had been set for meeting in a restaurant for a late lunch. I was anticipating this meeting for a very long time, but as the days drew near, I was nervous. It was as if I was meeting my parents-in-law ! We arrived at the restaurant and Olaf, Kasia and their son Oli were seated at a long table. At the end of the table were Andre and Teresa. It took just a few seconds for Andre to pull me into a big bear hug and he managed to say « I am so happy to meet you finally »….. choking on his words. My heart was full and tears stung my eyes. Teresa was standing very close and she hugged me closely and said through her tears…. « thank you for saving my son’s life ». By this time, we were all crying. It was a meeting of the hearts, of several hearts coming together, celebrating an amazing event and overflowing with gratitude for the gift of life, for the gift of all our lives. It has been four years since the transplant. I was really eager to meet Teresa and Andre in person as I thought about the grief they had experienced when Olaf’s health was rapidly deteriorating and the search for a kidney cross match seemed non-existent. What an ordeal for a family ! I knew that the determination, the faith and the love they had for each other kept them going. I was enthralled to meet them ! I will never forget this moment.
The third highlight of my Vancouver holiday was meeting with the grade 5 students of my previous school in Port Coquitlam, Cedar Drive Elementary. The students were told that a special guest was coming to speak to their class. The students were very excited as I walked in the classroom. « Mrs. M and M is our special guest !! » When the excitement settled, I showed my slide show of my school, AISC and my life in Africa. Then I spoke to them personally about their pen pals from my class and answered their numerous questions. Towards the end of my visit, I spoke to them about the orphanage, Espoir de Vie and explained how the Christmas Toy Drive we organized overflowed two big boxes with toys and baby food. This brought joy to the babies and toddlers as they giggled and opened the gifts. I told the students that the Orphanage still needed help. Babies need new towels, pyjamas and clothes. One girl piped up : « I could send my baby sister’s clothing when she grows out of them. » « What a great idea ! » I replied. Then others gave more ideas until a school wide Baby Drive seemed to be the project of choice. The teacher asked if shipping would be possible, to which I replied that it would be difficult but that I could come and collect the items during the summer holiday. The kids enthusiasm was palpable! The teacher’s eyes met mine and I spoke : « I am getting shivers here thinking that my students and your students will be helping the Orphanage…..this is a true humanitarian, across the world project. » I left Cedar Drive Elementary floating on a ribbon of joy and hope for the young people of today.
The youth of today understand at a deep level the smallness of our planet, the global village concept is concrete to them and they seem to know instinctinvely how to help others in need. The world is theirs to discover and they see how we are all connected. Perhaps the internet, television and accessible travel has made this possible. There is hope for the future!
One of the highlights of the Christmas season for me: meeting Olaf's parents, Teresa and Andre. This was a celebration of life!
