Today, I exchanged a container of homemade chocolate chip cookies for several bras that I will need following my breast reconstruction surgery next month. A kind friend passed along the bras she used when she had breast reconstruction surgery more than...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 20th, 2024
I had lunch with a friend today. Like many of my former colleagues, she is on the cusp of retirement. We talked about the challenges that a lot of people experience when transitioning to life after work. She spoke of one friend who is hesitating to ret...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 20th, 2024
On our lunchtime walk today, Mel and I ran into a woman who was trying to engage her granddaughter by pointing at a flag flying in front of a school. I joined the grandmother in drawing the girl's attention to the flag, using simple language.
Almost a...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 19th, 2024
In 2020, I was one of approximately 3,000 Canadians diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Every year since then, another 3,000 people have received this same shocking news.
When first diagnosed, I turned to the Internet, despite having been advised not to G...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 17th, 2024
Lots of good things happened today. Running into one of my first cousins at a store. Having lunch with my sister-in-law. Finding helpful people at my local library. Congratulating my son on his reaching a 600-day streak in Duolingo. Having my little ne...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 16th, 2024
While volunteering at Bluesfest last week, I struck up a conversation with a fellow volunteer who was sitting beside me in Volunteer Check-in. I learned that she was originally from Spain, and our discussion quickly turned to one focused on languages. ...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 15th, 2024
My 6th great-grandmother was Sarah Allen, born in Deerfield, Massachusetts, in 1692 to Edward Allen and Mercy Painter. She was one of 112 people taken captive by French and Indigenous forces from New France, who attacked the New England town on Februar...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 15th, 2024
Tonight, as I read through posts from a year ago this week—encompassing the day of my bilateral mastectomy and the subsequent recovery days—I was reminded of the challenges of surgery. But I was also reminded of the body's remarkable capacity to heal. ...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 13th, 2024
Chris and I took a walk on a new path today—at least, a new path for us. It was the very picturesque Trillium Woods, which we accessed behind the City of Ottawa's Richcraft Recreation Complex in Kanata North.
The 134-acre Trillium Woods offer 5 km of...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 13th, 2024
Today, I received the date and location of my breast reconstruction surgery: August 20, 2024, at the Queensway Carleton Hospital. Dr. Zhang of The Ottawa Hospital will continue to be my primary surgeon, assisted by Dr. Lee of the Queensway Carleton Hos...
Jennifer Hollington
Posted on July 11th, 2024
