my whitt

I'm a tad late. I meant to write this a few weeks ago, but school and rehearsals and, well, life caused me to delay.

My sister, Whitney Shea (Saip) Dyck turned 24 on October 24th - her champagne birthday. It's hard to believe that we're getting into our mid-twenties... I remember sitting on our bedroom floor, making barbie cars out of slippers and wondering what we would look like when we turned 16.

I have lots of memories with Whitt - she has been my "other half" since 1988. From before I can remember I have tried to be just like her... everything from outfits, to hairstyles (pixie cut in grade 5, yikes), to last names... haha. In all honesty though, I don't know who I would be without her. She has played such a vital role in shaping who I am today - she's always been a coach, cheerleader, mentor, confident, supporter and best friend to me, and I can't explain how much she means to me.

So Whitty, happy (belated) birthday. I love you more than you'll ever know.

xo Jay

Day by Day.

I wrote this note for facebook last week, but I thought I'd share it on my blog as well...

Joshua 1:9

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

sometimes I get discouraged. sometimes I wonder why I'm still dealing with these health issues, why God hasn't healed me. but then I remember just how good I have it... just how blessed I am. despite the frustration I sometimes feel, I know that I belong to an all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful Saviour.

i love this old hymn. my prayer is that these words would always ring true in my life.

Day by day and with each passing moment,

Strength I find to meet my trials here;

Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment,

I've no cause for worry or for fear.

He whose heart is kind beyond all measure,

Give unto each day what He deems best;

Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,

Mingling toil with peace and rest.

Ev'ry day the Lord Himself is near me

With a special mercy for each hour;

All my cares He fain would bear and cheer me,

He whose name is Counselor and Pow'r.

The protection of His child and treasure,

Is a charge that on Himself He laid;

"As your days, your strength shall be in measure,"

This the pledge to me He made.

Help me then in ev'ry tribulation,

So to trust Your promises, O Lord;

That I lose not faith's sweet consolation,

Offered me within Your holy Word.

Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,

E'er to take, as from a Father's hand,

One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,

Till I reach the promised land

this eminent spotlight.

I'm pretty excited...

this coming Wednesday is the first read through of "Girl in the Goldfish Bowl", which is the Morris Panych play that I was cast in at UFV. The cast is only 5 people and, in all honesty, everyone is SO great! (Which sounds conceited, but you know what I mean).

The play is set in 1962, when air raids and the Cuban missile crisis are part of daily conversation.

My wonderful, marvellous, talented friend Gabby Bohmer is the lead - she plays 10 year old Iris - and she is PERFECT for the part. Just an all-star.

Ron Jackson - a very funny and intimidatingly gifted actor - will be playing Owen, Iris' father, who has not worked since World War II (when he accidentally shot himself in the leg while loading a gun), and is completely obsessed with physics.

Rebekah Brisco - what a doll. Lovely, talented and hilarious! She will be playing Sylvia, Iris' mother, who, in an attempt to leave the family, slipped and broke her wrist, and is now stuck in an awkward situation.

Josh Wilson - who I think of when I think of "UFV Theatre". Very talented, and although I was super intimidated by him at first, he's actually very sweet and VERY funny. He will be playing Lawrence, an aimless drifter with an undistinguishable past whom Iris found on the beach and believes to be the reincarnation of her dead goldfish, Amahl ("I named him Amahl because that's where we bought him").

And me. I play "Miss Rose" ("maybe I'll tell you my first name when we've known each other a little longer.....Vivian"). I am the boarder at Iris' house, middle-aged, hopelessly stuck in the war years (for those were my glory days), I spend my days working at a fish cannery, and my nights down at the Legion making out with Veterans "like its VE day all over again" (although you never see it). I have the least amount of lines in the play, but the role is fabulous! (I actually have the most costume changes, which means that I will have multiple dresses made JUST for me!)

It's going to be wonderful. The show goes up in late January and runs until Feb. 6th. You should come see it.

xo - J

Really?

Look out, world. I'm "displeased".

"Hello...Jalen, is it?"

"Yes, hi"

"You've been dealing with this "condition" for a year and a half? hmmm... interesting. Have you had allergy testing before?"

"Yes, a year ago I had blood testing done through a naturopath"

"Oh. Well, I don't care what a naturopath found - do you KNOW of any allergies you have?"

"No... not for sure"

"Alright, let's do some tests then."

(Prick test, right arm foods, left arm contact allergens - 10 minutes of "reaction time")

"According to your reaction, it appears that you're quite severally allergic to dust mites"

"Oh. Is that why my arm is so swollen?"

"Yes. This allergy could be aggravating your skin quite a bit without you knowing it..."

Great. Wonderful.

First of all, naturopathic medicine (if that's what you'd call it - www.eczemanaturalhealing.com) has literally been THE ONLY thing that has had a lasting positive impact on my health (obviously also through God's help and healing), and although it's slow as the dickens (and some days I want to give up) it's effective for long term.

Secondly, my apartment is carpeted wall to wall to wall except in the kitchen and bathrooms... so, thanks so much for suggesting that I not have carpet - super helpful. Also, I don't think covers for my duvet, mattress and pillows are covered under my medical plan, so I'm not going to be able to run down to the store and purchase those anytime this semester, but thanks.

Basically, thank you for making me aware of an enemy that I actually cannot fight right now... except for more frequent dusting and vacuuming.

Pfff. I'm just frustrated. Why does no one respect natural healing? Medical plans don't cover pillow covers or probiotics or enzymes, or ANYTHING that helps me, but they DO cover steroids and cortisone creams and other garbage that has actually caused SO much damage in (and ON) my body. It's dumb. Really stupid.

I had to get that off my chest. I'm not saying that allopathic medicine is bad, I'm just saying that there should be a certain amount of cooperation and respect between the different methods of healing... I'm tired of being made to feel stupid by doctors. I've been dealing with this for a year and a half now and I know a few things about my body that they don't. I have a vested interest in my well-being, and I can't just tell myself "good luck" and send me out the door with a prescription.

Okay. I'm done. Sorry for losing my cool a little bit, but seriously.

my darling autumn.

I love fall. I really LOVE it. It gives me the warm fuzzies inside just THINKING about it!

Here are some thing I will always associate with fall:

- cozy clothes

- stunning colours

- crisp air

- pumpkins

- apple cider

- coffee dates

- gingerbread

- apple crisp

- my mom's "fall display"

- boots

- halloween (I love dressing up, carving pumpkins, having parties... even the smell of the candles inside the pumpkins!)

- family get togethers

- thanksgiving

- jazz music (specifically the Harry Connick Jr. "when harry met sally" album)

I love, love, love it. Unfortunately I'm not able to enjoy some of the usual highlights of fall because of my stupid skin, but hopefully that will all change soon! (I would LOVE to have a latte and a ginger-molasses cookie right now!)

My wonderful Aunt Terri sent me this fall collage a few days ago, and I just had to share it!

It is well.

Hey guys.

The past couple of weeks have been a little nutty.

Some of you may already know that Lyle (my wonderful stepdad) has been in the hospital for awhile now. He was diagnosed with epidural spinal abscesses. Basically, he had something comparable to tumours along the base of his spine that were causing him a lot of pain and threatened to cause neurological damage or paralysis if not treated immediately. On Thursday night they decided to do emergency surgery to try to reduce the risk of paralysis. The surgery went well, although they were unable to remove the abscesses, they could release some of the pressure around his spine. He's still at Royal Columbian Hospital, and they're now attempting to take care of the rest of the "problem" with antibiotics and other medications.

Thank you to those of you who were praying for our family - we can't tell you how much we've appreciated it! Lyle has really felt God's comfort through this whole ordeal (I think he's been calmer than mom and us four kids!) and we're obviously also VERY relieved that he still has full function of his limbs (and his mind!).

Lots of love.

Toms Shoes

This movement is rad.

Toms shoes is a company which was developed for the purpose of distributing one pair of shoes to a child in a third-world country for every single pair of shoes that they sell.

What an awesome idea.

http://www.tomsshoes.ca/content.asp?tid=529

check it out.

Personally, I love this pair:

I just need to have a little recovery time from my "all natural supplement" med purchases and school tuition and then these bad boys will be making an appearance on my feet! haha