Continuing from last week’s post, I wanted to let you know how the rest of my Texan travels went. Initially, I found myself very conflicted and uncomfortable with being back in Texas. Being surrounded by people who didn’t share common interests or ideals was proving to be very difficult for me. I struggled to stay pleasant and made it difficult for people to want to be around me.
I was able to connect with a friend and colleague who shared some insight with me that shifted my viewpoint and the way I interacted with my environment for the rest of the trip. This allowed me to settle in and truly enjoy the rest of my time in Texas. Read more about this conversation below…
At the end of my week, I received a text image from a friend that Justin Trudeau was asked to bar international students from returning to Ontario. This was the Friday before I was supposed to return to Canada, and goodness was I stressed! In my experience with Ontario/Candian rules, they typically made a decision and implement them the next day. I went into planning mode to ensure I crossed the border before midnight on Saturday to avoid being turned away at the border.
It was a tight situation. My plane landed in Buffalo at 10:30 pm and I had to wait for my bag to arrive. Once I finally got to my car, it was just after 11 pm, and I headed for the border. There was a small line and when I reached my border agent, it was just a few minutes after midnight. I had no idea how it was going to go.
The good news was that the premier did not enact the proposed law, and I had all of my paperwork in order. Luckily the border patrol agent was so preoccupied with all of the COVID19 questions that they forgot to ask if I had anything to declare. I was carrying 3 bags of dog food with me that they could have questioned me about!
Needless to say, I’m back in Canada completing my mandatory 14-day quarantine… more on this in next week’s post!
Week starting April 26, 2021…
Being vegan can still be hard sometimes. I’ve been vegan for nearly 9 years and while daily life flows effortlessly, the world at large can still struggle to meet my personal needs. Being locked up in a pandemic has also made me forget how going outside of my bubble can pose these challenges. I’m reminded how grateful I am to have access to food choices that do align with my privileged belief system. For the animals. For the environment. For my personal health, I choose vegan.
🌹I learned in Dierdre Cooper Owen’s book Medical Bondage: Race, Gender, and the Origins of American Gynecology the truth behind the foundation of American gynecology sits on the shoulders of black and Irish bodies. The brutal experimentations that were performed without consent or basic human dignity set the stage for most of what we know in medicine today. Learning the history of how slaves and Irish immigrants were treated has changed the way I consider historical medical research and early clinical data.
🧐 I’m curious to know more about my Irish roots and the potential exposure the women in my family had to medical experimentation or racism after immigrating to the USA. 🏚All of this continues to remind me of the intergenerational trauma we are all tasked with understanding and correcting in our lifetime.
🐴 Horses get hooked up to really cool IV systems that are suspended from the top of the barn and allow for movement within the stall. The IV catheter is sewn into the neck to keep it in place.
💉I learned how horses receive an ultrasound and how to see normal gut movement, abnormal fluid, and even spot a kidney!
❤️I hope to learn more about veterinary medicine and how naturopathic medicine is intertwined into treatments. I believe there is a lot to learn from hydrotherapy treatments for animals and a lot of research exists on it already. I'm curious to learn more!
💥People see people. I was lucky to have a friend and colleague spend some time with me when I was having a hard time. This person vulnerably shared with me some wisdom they had gained through their own journey, which really resonated with me. Without disclosing the intimacy of their experience, my takeaway from our conversation led me to release the hopes and expectations I had of loved ones that were causing me distress. They reminded me I had already learned that lesson with respect to romantic relationships (because let’s face it, expectations in romance ruin everything), yet I failed to see how I should and could also apply this to other relationships and connections. Releasing the expectations I had of my family allowed me to settle in and fully enjoy my time in Texas. I was really lucky to have this wisdom passed down to me.
👷🏾♂️I have to stop being so hard on myself. This recurring theme in my life is not unique to me. I know I share this with so many of you reading this.
I wonder if I were to approach my days with more levity and grace if I would accomplish more or feel better about myself?
I wonder if being hard on myself is a program that is meant to hold me back from reaching my potential?
I wonder if I’ll figure this out this week, month, year, or in my lifetime? I do believe it’s worth intentionally seeking…
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