Al Zylstra

So, here I am, back in Edmonton. My trips here are always a whirlwind adventure.

I am never in one spot for very long before I dash off.

I arrive late on Friday night’s – usually around midnight. A quick dash to the car rental agency, pick up the latest and greatest car ( which takes me 20 minutes to figure out where the lights, radio controls and ignition are) and then a quick 45 minute drive to Fort Saskatchewan. Once there, I grab a quick drink of water, and crawl into bed.

Sleep never lasts long there. There are no curtains in the room I am in and the sun comes blasting in at the crack of dawn. This time of year, that is 5 am. Eeek!

So, I get up, brush my teeth, grab a long luxurious shower, get dressed and make my way upstairs. This time of year, Pat is not home. He is out at his camp site out at Wizard Lake (go ahead and Google It. I can wait).

So, I have his place to myself. I make a big mug of tea, grab a couple of pieces of toast, turn on CNN so I can not only eat, but yell at the TV. A very relaxing way to spend the beginning of what usually is an emotional roller coaster of a day.

If possible, I swing by and pick up my niece, Kathy. We then dash off to see my mom who lives in a nursing home near West Edmonton Mall.

We stop and pick up chocolate and flowers. Both are some of my mom’s favourite things. And rightfully so. Both give her moments of serenity and happiness and nothing can beat that.

We don’t stay for more than a couple of hours. Visits longer than that tend to wear Mom out. I have learned the signs. Her head starts to droop and she starts to become withdrawn, quiet and even sullen. It is then that she becomes frustrated, angry and bitter. I have rarely seen that side of my Mom and it is truly awful.

I won’t go into any additional details as it serves no purpose other than to make me sad.

So, back to this last visit. I brought her chocolate and flowers – and she was overjoyed. That is, once I found her. She was visiting with another resident in the facility. My Mom was with a friend she had made there! It made me so happy to see her with another resident and they were happy. Chatting away about nothing in particular.

After about an hour in her friend’s room, we made our way back to Mom’s room where we had another conversation that lasted another hour. During that time, we talked about the past. That is where my Mom lives and where she remembers. So, that is what we talked about. I asked her about the decor in her room. That made her happy because she was able to tell me stories about the artwork.

After we finished our visit, it was time to head out. Normally, if Kathy is with me, we go and have lunch, but, this past weekend, she was busy studying for exams.

So, I headed out to go and visit Pat. During the Summer, he has a campsite that he spends his weekends at. It is called Jubilee Campground located at Wizard Lake near Devon, Alberta.

It is a beautiful little campsite where you can turn off the world. I enjoy my time there as I can just unwind with a cold beer, good food and hang with one of my closest friends.

I cannot imagine my life without this man in it. He has been my anchor, my friend, my companion in so many adventures. He has always been there when I needed him and for that I am eternally grateful.

So, after a nice dinner and conversation, it is time to turn in. Night comes very late in Northern Alberta and dawn arrives very early. So, I try to get as much rest as possible.

Sunday arrives very early and after a nice leisurely breakfast by the campfire, it is time to head back to Edmonton for Day 2 of my visit. Day 2 is always a crap shoot with Mom.

Fortunately, this time, it was good. Mom was in good spirits and about 45 minutes into my visit, my oldest brother and his wife showed up. They were there to take her for a stroll in the local park. So, off we went.

After about 30 minutes, it was time to take Mom back in for dinner and for me to head back to the airport for my trip home.

The wait at the airport is always a good way to digest and de-stress from the weekend. I get on a plane around 8:30 and I am home by 10:00.

This is the best part of the trip. I get to come home to an amazing man who loves me more than I can say. I unpack quickly and after a quick shower, hop into bed where my dogs are waiting patiently to welcome me home. They lick and snuggle in as close as they can. Alex then joins us and I am able to bask in that love while I drift off to sleep.

This is as close to Nirvana that I can imagine.

Nykie Zylstra was born in Happy Valley, China on approximately Christmas Day, 1998. He was one of approximately 6 puppies born in that litter. He was ½ Chinese Chow and ½ Keeshond. Both breeds are strong willed and very independent minded. Nykie seemed to have developed the best (and worst [grin]) of both….

Now for the scary part: Nykie and his litter mates were destined for someone’s dinner plate as part of the annual feast in China where dog meat is consumed. So, he was left in a tiny crate where he couldn’t even stand up or turn around. His diet consisted of weak tea and rice. We can only assume that this diet was designed to keep the meat tender and easy to cook.

Alex, Nykie’s Papa learned of his fate through a friendship he had developed with a famous Hong Kong actress who belonged to an organization called “Pet Save”. Alex has always been a staunch defender of the downtrodden. It took one picture of Nykie and Alex was on a plane to Hong Kong.

Alex and his friend were able to find their way to where Nykie and his siblings were awaiting their fate. Dressed in white lab coats, they made their way onto the property and gained access to where they were being held. Alex’s friend was able to convince the owners of these puppies that they were sick and needed treatment. Any attempt at eating these dogs would result in the people becoming ill. With that, Alex and his friend were able to leave with two of the puppies. Nykie and his brother. They advised the owners that they would return to take the others to the vet for treatment.

With Nykie and his brother secure in a facility, Alex and his friend returned to find all the other puppies gone. Someone had tipped the owners off what was going on and unfortunately, Alex was unable to rescue any other puppies.

Sad, but, not defeated, Alex was undaunted. He was able to secure two of them. He then met with airline officials and government officials to allow him to take the two puppies back to Canada. Alex had to agree to cover the cost of shipping these two little fellows home and arrange for treatment and quarantine.

With that, Alex flew back to Vancouver and began the arduous process of treatment and rehabilitation. Alex was able to find a foster family for Nykie’s brother, who was in better condition, physically than Nykie. The sad part of this part of the story is, two weeks after the rescue, Nykie’s brother got loose and was tragically killed by a car.

Alex’s focus was now on his “Little Man”. After a visit to the West End Animal Hospital in Vancouver, Nykie’s prognosis was grim. Due to his horrific living conditions and diet, he had no fur on the back half of his body, he had an undeveloped digestive system, he had various parasites throughout his body, and multiple scratches and scrapes. The worst part of the diagnosis was to come. Due to the cramped living conditions, Nykie could only walk on his wrists and his joints in has back legs were severely compromised. The only option to treat him effectively was to break his front legs and set them so that he could learn to walk properly. The back legs would require extensive physiotherapy on Alex’s part.

The first few months of Nykie’s life here were indeed painful and traumatic. But, the “Little Man’ soldiered through. Alex made a type of harness that he would wear to go outside for small walks to exercise his atrophied limbs. Alex would hold him up and walk ever so slowly with him; every day a little further. After many months, Nykie was able to take tentative steps on his own. This part of his recovery was still not without its challenges. Periodically, Nykie’s back legs would pop out their hip joints causing excruciating paint. Alex would patiently massage his legs and gently push the leg back into the joint.

Soon, with Alex’s ministrations, Nykie was able to gain strength (and fur). But, no matter how much Alex tried, he was never able to find a diet that would work for Nykie.

Enter Al, Nykie’s “Daddy”. I began my relationship with Alex and eventually, in 2003, we became a family. I had worked with Earth Options in a business relationship for approximately 3 years before I met Alex and Nykie. When I saw the challenges Alex was having with Nykie’s diet, I contact Pam at Earth Options. We discussed Nykie’s health and feeding challenges at great length. Eventually, we came up with a diet plan that was focused on nutrition and digestibility.

We started on a recipe that met all of his nutritional requirements: Canine Performance Chicken. With this recipe, not only did Nykie’s appetite improve, but, his skin and coat became much more manageable. He no longer threw up and, most importantly, he liked his food. Nykie was on this diet for the next 11 ½ years.

With this diet, he became much more active and would love to go for long, long, long walks through Stanley Park. At off-leash parks, he would run for what seemed to be hours. He loved going on trips. He especially loved camping. He would find a secluded spot near the tent and would plop himself down and wait for us to cater to his every whim.

We spent a few vacations camping on Vancouver Island. He especially loved Tofino where he could run on the beach for kilometres, stopping occasionally to dig up clams. He didn’t walk anywhere. He pranced. His gait was almost set to music. His exuberance for life was infectious.

One of Nykie’s all time favourite things was Christmas. Somehow, he always knew when Christmas was approaching. Out came the tree and soon the presents were underneath. Christmas day morning (Nykie’s birthday) was always a treat in the household. He would get his presents out from under the tree and unwrap them himself. Little bits of Christmas Wrap flew everywhere!

We eventually moved to Surrey where he enjoyed his golden years.

Sadly, Nykie began to slow down and on June 26, 2015 at the ripe old age of 17 ½ years, it was time for Nykie to cross the Rainbow Bridge. We do not mourn his passing as much as we celebrate the 17 years he was in Alex’s life and the 14 years I was privileged to be part of this family.

 

 

 

I am always thrilled to follow my bliss.  One of my biggest thrills is to work as a Stage Manager.  This year marks the 10th year that I have been involved with the Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival.

I am responsible for the World Beat Stage – Music Festival.  I get to listen to some of the coolest musical groups around and I get paid to do it!

Whoop!  Whoop!

Below are pictures of this past weekend.

Enjoy

I know that my anniversary is a ways off, but, I stumbled across some of my wedding photos.  These photos were originally posted on Facebook page.  When I deleted my Facebook account, I was able to download my history.  So, below are some of the photos from one of the happiest days of my life.

Plus, I was a lot skinnier then…..

It has been a few weeks since I wrote last and while a lot has been going on the world, I have tried to insulate myself from the majority of it.

My own life has been hectic enough.

Alex, my amazing husband has been diagnosed with Tinnitus – according to everyone’s favour psychosomatic website:  webmd categorizes Tinnitus as:  Tinnitus (pronounced   ti-ni-tis), or ringing in the ears, is the sensation of hearing ringing, buzzing, hissing, chirping, whistling, or other sounds. The noise can be intermittent or continuous, and can vary in loudness.

It has been a real strain on Alex.  I do not know if I could handle all the crap that this man has been through in the past 5 years.  Suffice to say, he has risen to the challenge and is going to overcome this, too.

He is scheduled to trial hearing aids which have been shown to alleviate Tinnitus.  I am hopeful.  The cost is not cheap, though.  $5,900!  Eeek.  But, that is what credit cards, financing and lines of credit are for, right?

On the work front, things have been busy!  As always.  I have, however cut my number of jobs back from 5 to 4!  Yay!  I am no longer working 7 nights a week booking appointments and talking to people about eye health.  I was able to move out of that job.  My former co-worker, Elisha has transitioned into that position and I am thrilled.

But, that still leaves me with 4 jobs.

My latest gigs are the Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival taking place on June 22 – 24, 2018 down at False Creek in Vancouver.  This is an annual event and I am thrilled to be the Stage Manager for the World Beat Stage for the 10th year!  And I get paid!!!!

This is a weekend long festival and I get to not only work with some amazing people but, I get to listen to great music.

The following weekend, I am overjoyed to be the Green Room Manager for Canada Day Celebrations on Granville Island.  This is such a fun gig.  I get to herd cats and nail Jell-O to the wall – not really, it just seems like it.  When it comes to performers, they are a flighty breed.  But, I get to work with fun people again.  Plus, I get paid!!!!!

Between these two gigs, I will have enough spending money for Alex’s and my upcoming trip to The Netherlands!  Did I forget to mention that?  Yup, Alex and I are off to the land of my ancestors for two weeks in September.

Airfare, hotel and car rental are all booked and paid for.  EEEK!  So, now it is just getting our spending money together.  We will be staying at a beautiful apartment hotel in Amsterdam just minutes from Schiphol Airport.  We will be spending a few days just touring Amsterdam and the balance of the trip will be checking out the country.

I have been there 4 times but, I never really got to see much other than relatives’ homes.  Now is the time to see Amsterdam, the Hague, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Bolsward, Sneek, and so many other places.

I have also been in touch with a few cousins there and we will be meeting up with them.  One of my second cousins – Tjalline will be acting as a local tour guide for us.  I am so happy to have her join us.

Isn’t she gorgeous?  I can’t wait to see her again.  We met back in 2004 when I traveled to the Netherlands with my mom to inter my dad’s ashes in the family crypt.  She was sweet, funny, charming and great to hang out with.

In the meantime, I am still traveling to Edmonton every 4 – 6 weeks to see my mom.

My mom’s  dementia continues its inexorable descent.  I am resigned to it.  But, it still hurts to see her this way.  She is frightened, angry, confused and so despondent.

I know that moments after I leave, she has forgotten that I was there, but, I will continue to go and see her as often as I can.  Those brief moments that she stays in the here and now are truly wondrous.  I bring along my tablet and bring up pictures of family members – long forgotten by me and my siblings – and something amazing happens:  SHE KNOWS THEM – SHE REMEMBERS THEM!  So, we talk about them – who they were, how she knew them and in those moments, my Mom is back.

She is vibrant, happy and Mom!  But, those moments never last long enough.

My last visit, I experienced what my other family members experience:  her sadness, her anger, her fear and it manifests itself in horrid ways.  She cursed.  She cried.  She demanded that I take her away from where she is.  She BEGGED for her life to be over and in that moment, I was crushed.

I tried to console her.  I spoke to her about the family and how we wanted her to be happy.  I tried changing the subject.  I tried to get her to look at more pictures.  Nothing worked.  Her head just sank to her chest and she began to cry.  The dementia had taken its hold on her and it was a death-grip.  No amount of effort was going to let her go.

She then dismissed me.  She told me to leave.  She didn’t want to see me anymore.  Those words were like little daggers in my heart.  I know that she didn’t mean them and didn’t know what she was saying.  Nonetheless, it hurt like nothing I had ever experienced before.

So, I left.  I drove my rental back to the airport and spent the next 5 hours sitting at the terminal just feeling numb.  But, I will survive.  My mom raised me to be tough and so I will get over this.  I will continue to see her as often as possible and I will put these circumstances away.  They do no one any good.

She is my Mom.

And now for a bit of joy.  Meet Annie!  She is a goat that I met when I went to pick up supplies for our menagerie.

My coworker, Laura is obsessed with Goats and so I sent her these pictures.  Her response:  STEAL IT!

Tempting, but, no.

So, another whirlwind trip to visit my mom. As always, I am a bit apprehensive about these visits. One can never be sure of my mom’s state. Fortunately, this has been a good visit.

She is relatively lucid and calm. Mom loves to talk about her family and I encourage it. Those memories, while distant and vague are the ones that allow her to focus and be able to share with certainty. I am forever grateful for.these chances to learn from my mom.

So, after my parents were married, their lives began to move forward very rapidly.  The Second World War had been over for about 5 years and the vast majority of Europe was still dealing with recovery, rebuilding and renovating.

The Netherlands was hit especially hard and the economy was faltering.  Employment opportunities were few, especially in the rural areas.  My parents were soon looking for new opportunities.  In 1950, my oldest brother was born and my parents felt it was time to move to the big city where more lucrative employment opportunities lay.

Off to Amsterdam they went.  They found a home on a houseboat in one of the canals in Amsterdam (I am so jealous.  I have always wanted to live on a houseboat).

They stayed in Amsterdam when my sister, Anna was born in December, 1952.

The birth announcements in the Netherlands include siblings.  Something I found a bit odd.

They stayed on the houseboat until 1953 when my Paternal Grandmother approached my dad and talked to him.  It seems that my two youngest uncles were not able to find work.  My grandmother was desperate to provide them with a better life.  So, my dad packed up my mom, my two siblings and his two brothers.  They boarded the SS Groete Beer, a refurbished American Troopship from World War II.

This is a copy of the ship’s passenger manifest.

And so, my parents, my brother, sister and two uncles set sail to Canada to start their new life.