The Month (from hell!!) before Departure

The month before departure is a blur… In addition to my regular work, starting a new job at the base looking after RMC students, keeping up on my work for undergraduate medicine Student Affairs (and making contingency plans for the time I would be away), meeting with the Dean, both associate Deans and the Principle of the University to fine tune the Queen’s medicine Global Health Initiative that we've been working on, packing for three and going to hockey provincials with Sid’s Atom A Ice Wolves… I was attempting to finish my thesis which has been dragging for five years!! A few hours before departing for the airport in Montréal, I finally pressed “send” so that my supervisors could have the most updated version of my work before I embarked on the trip that would invariably bring long periods of time without access to Internet. It was certainly a month to remember!!
Empire life, both emergency departments and the kid’s school all held campaigns to collect items for us to bring to the orphans. In all, the children collected 1000 toothbrushes as well as tons of toys and clothes. Two days before departure the Whig Standard came to school and took photographs of Sid and Adam and some of their friends with the collected items. I must say that the photo shoot was a lot more enjoyable than what came next… trying to pack as many of the items as we could without exceeding the 50 kg per bag limit. Thank you to Mom, Jess, Molly and Morley for helping with the last-minute details!