Gratitude

The great Tennesse Williams once said " Life is partly what we make it, and partly what is made by the friends we choose".

I would have to agree.

In the past two months, as our planning slowly transitioned into real life, Trent and I began to reflect on how the pieces of the puzzle had fallen into place, and how our friends had made their mark on so many of our plans. We both agreed on how truly lucky we are. We have great friends. Without them, none of this would have been possible.

It was Trent and I who made the decision to move halfway across the world, but it was our friends and family who made sure it actually happened. When we broke the news of our intentions, most people found themselves balancing between their feelings of excitement of our new adventure, and sense of disappointment that we were leaving. Emotions aside, we found that often the people who were most upset about us leaving were the ones ended up making it all possible.

The help we received ranged from simple favours to serious time commitments. Whether it was signing official documents, writing letters to immigration to support our relationship, babysitting Huff, helping us with our move, to a find job, secure a licence, or fly our dog across the world, we noticed it all.

Today we wanted to say thanks to some special individuals who helped make our dream into a reality.

First, we would like to say thanks to both of our families, and all of our close friends for standing behind us during this process and supporting us in our adventure, even though it means we will not be around for holidays and special occasions. You all have been incredibly supportive, and your interest in our travels has made sharing our daily undertakings and stresses a lot of fun. We love you, and enjoy taking you along with us on our endeavours.

We cannot go too much further without thanking my dear friend, Lee Vivian, her husband Mark Lee and their dog Skye. You really never know how your own personal actions will change the lives of others. Had it not been for Lee and Mark's wedding, I am certain that Trent and I would still be sitting in Ottawa today. Lee and I met 10 years ago as exchange students in Finland, and had always wanted to reunite. Once Mark had proposed, Trent and I suddenly found ourselves with a very official invitation to Australia, and with no excuse to turn it down. What we had originally planned to be a month long trip down under, slowly started to evolve into a life changing idea. Thank you, Lee and Mark, not only for everything you did for us during our Australian stay, but most importantly, for being the spark that got this fire started. Come visit soon!

Trent and I at Lee and Mark's Beach Wedding. December 3, 2011



Me and my stunning friend, Lee on her wedding day

Our second Aussie thank you goes to my old friend (she just turned 30!) Kristen Manchester and her partner Tim Pass. While we would not have made it to Australia without Lee and Mark, we most likely would not have had the amazing Sydney experience without Kristen and Tim, who allowed us to crash on their futon for two weeks, Thanks for a fantastic time, and for including us in all you did, including camping, cricket and bluebottle stingings. We cannot wait to return the favour.

Trent and I in Sydney! December 2011

It has become a tradition of ours to give anyone who has helped us with Huff (dog sitting, training, etc) with a bottle of wine from Huff Estates, as a thank you for their help. For those of you who know us well, it should not come as a surprise that Huff was named after Huff Estates, one of our favourite vineyards in Prince Edward County. Unfortunately Huff's winemaking has been slowed by her recent travel and we are running short on thank you bottles at this time, however she did provide us with some very specific aroo roo roo's of her gratitude to distribute out to some very specific people who helped her along her way.

First and foremost, we must thank Matthew and his team at Gloucester Kennels in Ottawa. Without his hard work, and expertise, I’m sure we would have never found our way through the red tape of New Zealand Biosecurity and MAF. Your willingness to co-ordinate Huff's preparations while corresponding with two nervous parents in Australia and two separate dog sitters in Canada was duly noted. Your warm and caring attitude, and the ease at which you ensured our dog's safety gave us new confidence in her relocation journey. She arrived in perfect condition. Our sincerest thanks.

We left Huff on November 20, 2011 to fly to Australia fo 2 months.  Huff did not fly out to New Zealand until January 18th, 2012. During this time she was blessed to have been showered in love by not just one, but two special dog sitters and their respective pups.

We must first pay tribute to our dear friends Barb Molnar, her parents, her fiancée Chris, and ¸their dogs Ava, Lily and Dudley for stepping up without reserve or second thought to watch Huff while we were away. You are truly loving and amazingly generous people. Thank you for everything you did and continue to help us out with; managing the "brood" of three to four dogs in one house (plus several cats), driving back and forth between Bellville and Ottawa for multiple vet visits, for storing and relocating our extra things to your basement, for spoiling Huff at Christmas, and mostly for being the incredible people you are. You have helped us in so many ways and have played such an integral part in our move. There are no words to express how deep our gratitude runs for all you have helped us with, so I will simply say Thank You.

Another pouring of gratitude must be made to Tanya Gadoury, Huff's foster mom and second dog sitter. Huff hit the jackpot when she arrived in Canada and was fostered for about six weeks with Tanya and her comically stoic chocolate lab, Rocky. A week before we were scheduled to leave Canada, we hit an unexpected bump in our dog sitting plans and suddenly needed a bit of extra help. Tanya was amazing. She graciously agreed to take Huff for three weeks (which actually became four) on very short notice. Thank you for saving the day, keeping us updated with daily videos and pictures which got us through the first couple of tough weeks, for taking Huff to yet another vet appointment, and for loving her the way you do. Another thank you should go out to Rocky for putting up with Huff's insistent antics for four weeks; they sure were funny to watch. To both of you, our heartfelt thanks for all the help you have given us this year.

Huff and Rocky

Lastly, a huge thank you must go out to John and Denise Clark, and the team at Shado Lans Kennels and Quarantine in Levin, New Zealand. Since the time Huff landed on New Zealand soil, you have been a extremely valuable resource, and helped us to ensure that everything went as planned. The environment Huff stayed in during her quarantine could not have been cleaner or roomier, and your staff was so welcoming, resourceful and caring every time we visited. Thank you for maintaining such high standards of care, and demonstrating your warm Kiwi hospitality to our furry companions straight from arrival. You run a compassionate and organised kennel, and Huff is lucky that you were holding up the sign with her name on it at the Wellington Airport.

Moving forward from dogs to jobs, there are a few colleagues that we need to acknowledge for helping us along our way through the paperwork mountain.

To Marty Ryan, Vaida Hick and Jason Bradley at CBI Health for helping me with reference letters and proof of employment for the Physiotherapy Board and immigration, in the speediest time possible. I hope you know just how much I appreciate your patience, encouragement and all around support in my relocation.

To Chris Dobson at CBI Ottawa West for linking me with your TBI contacts in New Zealand, and providing me a great reference, which ultimately landed me the job that landed us in New Zealand. Thank you for continuing to link the CBI and TBI worlds with your work and training, and for helping to foster great opportunities for people like me. I hope you know how much I appreciate it.

To Rita Whittle, Frances McCormick, and the Emergency Management team at HRSDC in Gatineau, QC, for supporting Trent's leave of absence and allowing him to pursue an adventure in New Zealand. He is extremely grateful for all you help and support over the last several months.

Our last tokens of gratitude go out to those who helped us in those critical moments of our move out of our home in Ottawa. As the clock was winding down to the last critical hours before our flight to Australia, our storage unit was quickly running out of space . We found ourselves asking where we were going to store our remaining belongings. A few very generous people stepped in to help us out in the 11th hour, and to you, we will be forever grateful.

Thank you again to Barb's parents for allowing us to store a few items in their spacious garage (at 7:00am). You will never know how much you saved us.

Additional thanks must go out to Trent's close friends, Jeff Ballard, Chris Abbott and Janice Woolgar for taking the time to pick up the last few items from our soon to be sold home, and graciously storing  it for us for the last few months. An extra thank you must go out to Jeff for picking up our mail, and to his brother Andrew for generously watching our TV while we are away :)

More love must be sent out to Trent's Uncle Gene and Aunt Bernice for offering to travel to Ottawa to pick up these remaining things from our friends and store them for the long term. You two never fail to spoil us.

And finally, to my parents, Sandra and Ron Watson, for making room for an additional grandchild in their two car garage (our Nissan Sentra). Thank you for always cheering on your children's adventures and for stepping up to help when it is truly needed. We love you.

We started this list with a couple who lit the spark that started us moving, and we will end with a man who was an integral part in completing all of our immigration and licencing requirements. To our favourite lawyer and good friend, Jack Warren, for signing and certifying copies of endless documents on several occasions, all for convenient price of Trent’s company and a Bridgehead coffee. We could not have done it without your help and you will be happy to know we are currently holding valid work visas and a licence to practice physiotherapy in New Zealand. The next round of drinks in Ottawa is most defiantly on us.

It often takes something big to make you realize how many good people surround you in life. And it is true that you often do not know what you have until it is far away, or gone. Whether it was with a sound bite of encouragement or an integral step in the right direction, your help paved the way to where we stand today.

We made it because of you.

Let the Kiwi dream begin.

 

Home

" Go Confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined."

This is my personal mantra. I read it for the first time several years ago and instantly connected with it. It made sense in an inspiring, tough love kind of way. These words have come in handy during some tough and stressful times over the years, when I question myself whether what I am doing is really worth all the pain, stress and sacrifice. What I love about these words is that they force me to imagine the life I want to live, and most importantly, what goals I must achieve in order to live life that way. To date, after asking myself these questions, I always find myself feeling justified and refocused, and realising that whatever I'm working on is certainly worth the effort.

In December 2010, a couple of weeks before my 28th Birthday, Trent and I were wandering through the One of a Kind Artisan Christmas Show in Ottawa. For those of you who have never been, this is a show full of vendors who sell art, jewelry, crafts, artisan food, furniture and clothing. It is always a great place to find unique gifts for others or yourself. That day we came upon a man who made pieces of jewelry that had tiny inscriptions on them. He had several hundred options of many sayings and quotes on all different shaped earings necklaces and braclets. I loved the uniqueness of each one, as he had handcrafted each individually himself. I looked for several minutes inspecting each piece and reading the different inscriptions. Disappointed that he didn't seem to have a piece with my words on it, I almost left the table empty handed. But, being the great salesman that he was, he handed me a list of possible sayings that he had in stock. It turned out he had mine.

My Necklace

Being that it was Christmas and I was supposed to be buying other people gifts, I did not have a lot of extra cash to put towards a gift for myself. I became even luckier that day when Trent saw in my eyes how much I loved the piece and that it was something that would mean alot for me to have. He helped me pick out the one I wanted,  handed his Visa to the man, and told me he would hang onto it until my upcoming birthday. While it was no shock when I opened the gift a few weeks later, the necklace became one of my most treasured pieces of jewelry and one of the most meaningful Birthday gifts I had ever received.

It is this very same necklace that has become my good luck charm throughout this whole process. I have worn it during every flight, while Huff was travelling, the day we were reunited, and the day she came home. I have worn it on days when I was feeling uneasy that our plans may fall through or that my physio licence wouldn't be approved. Its words have provided me strength, and forced me to ask myself about the life and goals I was working towards.


Today I realised we were living the life I had imagined. We had finally made it.

Let me backtrack and catch you up. On Monday morning Trent and I awoke to an early morning start (though neither of us had slept much through the night).  10 days were up, and we could finally bring Huff home! We headed back up to Shado Lans with her new collar and leash in hand and, after performing all the necessary administrative duties, we were allowed to let her loose. She saw me get out of the car with the leash and collar in hand, and when I waved and called her name from the gate, she erupted into a wild bum wiggling, tail whipping mess. This, we soon found out, was only a minimum level on her excitement scale. When we opened the door to her suite she nearly knocked both Trent and I over with the force of her excited greetings, and it took both of us to calm her down enough to put on her collar.

She was finally coming home.


The day we brought her home was one of the most beautiful days we have had since being in New Zealand. The sun was warm, the sky was clear, and the wind was low; the perfect day for her first walk on the beach. Huff was beside herself with joy, and Trent and I weren't too far behind her. We spent 2.5 hours on the beach that day, half during the afternoon and the other half at sunset. On rare occasions, life hands you an honestly perfectly formed day. I consider this one of them.

Every morning since Monday, we have spent an hour or more taking long walks on the beach with  Huff, enjoying what is left of our time off. Huff runs around exploring, smelling and peeing on just about everything she finds interesting.Such locations have included bushes, dead fish, sandcastles and shells.  More than once she has tried to mark her spot and discovered that her bladder was fresh out of pee, but she seems to manage the tiniest drop to leave her scent on the desired location. Trent and I walk and play with her, as we inspect the ever changing beach debris that the tide leaves behind each day. This usually contains an array of driftwood, seaweed, shells, fish and corral. Mostly we just feel lucky and grateful to be living life this way.

While Huff settles into her new lifestyle, and Trent tries to make a living as a professional sea shell collector,  I woke up on Tuesday to find that life had a big cup of goodness brewing for us this week. A call to the Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand confirmed that my application assessment had been completed and that I would be receiving mail the next day confirming that my application had been.....APPROVED!!!!!!! I kindly thanked the woman on the phone and quickly hung up in time to let out a shriek of pure joy and relief.  "YES!!!!!!!" were the only words that came out of my mouth as I flew down the short hallway from the bedroom to the kitchen into Trent's open arms. Huff came over, tail wagging, and did what she always does when Trent and I hug. She joined in.

 It was official. We had just received our ticket to a life in New Zealand.

Ironically, I had a first meeting with my New Zealand boss today. For those who don't know, I am working for a company called TBI Health in New Zealand, a sister company to CBI, who I worked for in Canada.This is part of the reason we chose New Zealand, as CBI had strong connections with TBI, and have done several employee transfers and inter company training over the years. It was an interesting feeling getting dressed and stepping back into the world of being a professional. We had been travelling for eleven and a half weeks. We had seen old friends, countless new places, relaxed, explored, and lived life by our own agenda. I did not regret a thing. This morning I knew that my mind and body were ready for the next step.

The clinic is nice and the staff is quite friendly and welcoming. It will take me some time to learn the new programs and insurance organisation, but I am looking forward to using my brain again, and sitting back in the learner's chair, instead of being the leader. I spent the day checking off the many " to dos" of settling into a new community; registering the dog with the city, purchasing some things for the house, mailing the board some important documentation, and getting a bus pass. It was nice to feel productive again.

I took the bus home, got off at my stop and stepped into the pouring rain. It was cold and wet, and I couldn't wait to get inside. As I opened the gate, I looked up. Through the rain I saw Trent and Huff sitting at the big picture window watching me and waving.

For the first time, I did not have to imagine what it would be like, or ask myself if it would be worth it. The finish line was in sight.

 We were finally home.