I'm Canadian

I recently visited with my Uncle Jack!

Uncle Jack and I have a special bond.  We have both had kidney transplants.  His happened 26 or 27 years ago (kidneys generally only last 11 years in TODAY'S medicine, so the life of his kidney is nothing short of a miracle).  Mine happened a year and a half ago.

We rarely see each other, but when we do conversations are always turn to our medications, complications, hospital stays and "clean living" (his secret for being so healthy).

Uncle Jack was so excited about our last meeting that he told my mother how proud he was of me and how I have been dealing with the family kidney 'issue'.  Our kidney issues are hereditary. As patriarch of the Hope family, he provided me with documentation/family records that proved my great grandfather, his grandfather, immigrated to the US from Canada. Quebec to be exact.

Amazing! Now I know why I love poutine and it was only natural that I have always been drawn to all things Canadian.


(Additionally, via the same family records, I learned that my great uncle lost his life in the Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942.. I'll save this story for another blog post)