Always the good and the bad, or worrisome! (Hopefully. It could be all bad.) 2014 was that sort of year.
But today was one of those days when all is excused: our son Doug phoned to say that after five worrisome months, he has finally been diagnosed as cancer-free. Yeay!!! What a great Christmas present to all of us.
Our winter had been fairly uneventful. I would say that on my part the biggest and most uncomfortable part was the reluctant realization that old age is no longer creeping up; it’s overtaking us at a gallop! We spend great swaths of time just resting up from any and all endeavours. Discussing exhaustion has become a common pastime. Plus discussing what seems to be our increasing forgetfulness…
May brought the abrupt passing away of Denise’s father at the ripe old age of 102, and June brought the news of the passing away of our dear sister-in-law Irene, Dave’s wife.
But aren't we all used to life’s cycles being all over the map? In August we celebrated granddaughter Emilie’s wedding in Ottawa. Doug and Anne treated us all to an elegant affair, indeed! Emilie was radiant. And husband Graham is a delight. Except for Jock, who can no longer travel, (and Denise’s dear sisters Pat and Leila) all the McKay family were there, even Great-Uncle Dave came from Vancouver Island.
Doug and Anne’s daughter Stephanie has had an amazing year; she’s had a breakthrough as a fashion illustrator: she’s become ”discovered”: chosen to be an illustrator at the Toronto Spring and Fall fashion weeks, followed by similar work for Holt Renfrew, Target and a contract with a NY fashion house. And their son Kevin continues working at Ontario Power Generation in the nuclear field.
Our daughter Pat and her husband Ernie are both looking at retirement: Ernie probably this winter, Pat maybe in 2 years. Their son Greg is still composing music and performing on stage and in videos, and Amanda is back at school, aiming to become an accountant, plus she is engaged to be married next summer to Chris, a very likable fellow.
Daughter Judy and Rob’s lives were hectic most of the year: their move from Iowa to a home in Port Credit ( Mississauga) took huge amounts of their time, but now they are finally settled in. With their 3 dogs. And a cat. Both Mike and Shannon go to Iowa U so not much time seeing them! Judy has completed, now, a year at her job at McCarthey Tetrault, and Rob manages the house and finances and is taking courses in international economics starting in January.
Son Dave’s alter ego, Sketchy the Clown, ran for mayor of Toronto this past year. Strangely enough, he didn't get elected but Sketchy got heaps of publicity… leading for more calls for performing. And a happy Dave! He’s also doing new IT work -- more about that next year!
Denise continues on with jewellery-making classes a couple of times a week. The PMR (polymyalgia rheumatica) and its resulting tiredness magically disappear when she’s chatting, beading, soldering and hammering. It’s a modern day version of a quilting bee.
Jock despite back problems and periods of atrial fibrillation, is still in love with the computer world. Blogs and videos and databases. For Christmas, he’s asked for Rosetta Stone. He would like to resume studying French. He says: pour quoi-pas? Yes, why not?
Merry Christmas and all the best for 2015 from the Burlington McKays.
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