Tuesday, October 4, 2022





We saw our other grandson, Charlie, last Thursday.  We took him out for a couple of hours, the first time we'd ever been alone with him.  He's a sweet little guy.  You can tell he hasn't gotten a lot of attention in his short life.  I imagine the big guy will rectify that.  He's a wizard with children.

Friday was a stat holiday, Truth and Reconciliation Day, here in Canada.  September 30th was the day the children were taken from their reserves.  We took Jack down to Broadmoor Park and joined the crowds of people learning about Indigenous culture.  Jack had a great time at the park and played hard.  At some point, I realized that September 30th was the day when the children were taken and what that must have meant to a community.  Can you imagine having all of the children disappear from your community?  What that would do to your community? Can you imagine all of the children in this photo taken one day?  Can you imagine the pain of the parents and the grandparents?


Jack must have picked up a bug at the celebrations or at the park because he started vomiting at 4am Saturday morning and he kept on vomiting all day.  It's heartbreaking watching a little one sick.  They don't understand nausea and vomiting or what you have to do to deal with it.  I did manage to get some gravol into him a few times but it didn't seem to have much affect.  We just sat with him for most of the day and did a lot of laundry. 


He finally fell asleep about 5pm, exhausted.  He woke up briefly, vomited again and then was able to sleep through the night and felt better on Sunday.  We took him over to his other grandma's on Sunday afternoon and left him there.  Apparently, he vomited one more time on Sunday night but is on the mend now.

Monday morning I woke up with nausea and diarrhea.  I felt like absolute shit all day yesterday and even ended up laying on the floor at one point.  I hate being sick.  I know I just have to wait it out but when my whole body aches and any movement makes me nauseous, I hate it.  I never did end up vomiting, thankfully, just a whole lot of diarrhea and terrible hearburn.  I often wonder how people managed being sick a thousand years ago, without medicine and without an understanding of what caused the illness.

This morning I was able to eat breakfast and went back to bed and slept until 11am.  I feel like a human again, hurray.

I make a terrible patient.  


19 comments:

  1. I can't imagine the pain of losing the children; many of the parents and grandparents probably went mad. I would have. September 30 is my late dad's birthday so it was a different kind of sadness for me. I hope that everyone is on the mend, I also hate being sick, especially if there is nausea or vomiting involved. :(

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    1. I imagine it drove a lot of parents mad, and grandparents too. Children are a gift from the Creator in the indigenous culture and to have the gift ripped away and abused must have been torture to the family left behind.

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  2. Love the photos of your grandsons. I hope they can be there for each other as they grow up. I'm grateful to have a local first cousin who has become like a sister. Otherwise, I have no close family members.

    I've been reading a blog by a Metís man from Montana. Today he wrote about the Indian Schools. I hope this link works:

    https://chrislatray.substack.com/p/many-children-never-returned-home?utm_source=email

    Sorry to hear you and Jack have not been feeling well. It is such a relief when that kind of illness runs its course.

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    1. I hope the boys will be friends. Time will tell. I'll take a look at that blog. Thank you.

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  3. Kids love sharing their bugs, don't they. Feel better soon.
    We had something similar here. They call it the Stolen Generation. All done with the best of intentions and the worst possible outcome.

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    1. Residential schools were not done with the best intentions, they were specifically designed to kill the Indian in the child.

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  4. Little Charlie and little Jack ... so adorable!
    So sorry you and Jack had to deal with the terrible intestinal bug! It's so tough on the body regardless of your age!
    Hope you are feeling better on Wednesday!

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    1. I'm still feeling crappy but not vomiting, yay.

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  5. I hate vomiting worse than anything. When I worked in the microbiology department I was always forgetting and would put a pen in my mouth, which would end up with some dread contamination, which required sleeping on the bathroom floor. Kids are amazing little petri dishes. Glad you are better.

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    1. When it happens once I can understand but for that to happen more than once, really? Sorry, too funny.

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  6. I'm glad that you're all feeling better, but that sounds awful! Charlie and Jack are precious --

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    1. Still recovering but Jack is back to daycare.

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  7. No I can't imagine what it would do to anyone losing their children. I think I would go insane!!!!! And I'm sorry you and Jack have been so sick - hope you're feeling better now though. You still have two gorgeous grandsons though!

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  8. The indigenous weren't seen as whole people, therefore taking their children wouldn't be devastating to them. Cruel. Those little boys are adorable. I'm sorry you and Jack got sick and am pleased you are both better.

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    1. Both boys have Indigneous blood in them. My son's grandma is Cree.

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  9. 37paddington
    Sounds like you had what Jack had. Glad everyone is on the mend. Your grandsons are so sweet. You are their center of calm.

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  10. I cannot imagine having my children seized and having no legal recourse. At least your country recognizes it. Here, people simply oppose teaching about it.

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  11. Ps: kids are perfect little incubators and freely share what they pick up. Puking is the worst. Glad everyone is better.

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