It is 4 a.m. and I am sitting in bed in my hotel room in Toronto, replaying in my head the past 24 hours. It has been a whirlwind, but so full of life lessons and examples of the kindness of others that I feel like I must write it down now, before I forget any of the details of what might have been the most amazing night of my life. If any of you are feeling like the world is lacking kindness, I would ask that you please read this article. I have experienced so much kindness in the past 24 hours, my bucket is overflowing. And I feel like I must share.
For those of you who are followers of the blog, you know that Big W, Little J, and I hit the road and headed to Toronto for our Toronto Blue Jays do-over trip. If you are new to the blog, thanks for clicking and taking a chance on me. I am hopeful that today’s post will fill your heart with joy and you will find that your click was worthwhile. To catch up, please read the lead up to today’s post, Everything Happens for a Reason: Lymphoma, Baseball, and the Kindness of Others, which explains how we got to where we are today.
The reaction that I received to Everything Happens for a Reason: Lymphoma, Baseball, and the Kindness of Others was incredible. I jokingly describe myself as “Winnipeg famous,” meaning that I am known in Winnipeg, primarily because I have taught a lot of students who are now working as accountants and resident physicians in Winnipeg. I have also jokingly referred to myself as the Beyoncé of the accounting world, minus the golden microphone and the wind machine (which she had when she performed in Winnipeg in 2014).
I have had a lot of feedback on my blog from the learners who I work with in the Rady College of Medicine at the University of Manitoba. I have heard that they appreciate the content, and that the personal anecdotes are enjoyed and appreciated. I discovered very quickly in the fall of 2018 when I first started using “life lessons” in the classroom, that the message resonates and sticks with the learners better when there is a personal connection. So many of my stories and posts involve personal stories and experiences, but always coming back with a financial hook (in these recent posts, the hook is kindness, but I will get back to financial literacy next week). I am totally willing to put myself out there and share incredibly personal stories in the interest of financial literacy education. During Orientation Week this year, the first year medical learners heard about a 2013 trip to Disney World which included recent potty training, a wet t-shirt, and a magical evening at Chef Mickey’s for 3 year old Big W (who was just Little W at the time). But the message of the story was that you don’t know what is going on in someone’s head, or what they have been through, just by looking at them from the outside (I had shared what appeared to be an incredibly happy family posing for a pre-dinner photograph at the entrance of Chef Mickey’s; I was incredibly happy, but also had a damp t-shirt 😬).
I have my blog posts set to automatically post to X (I still call it Twitter in my head) when I publish them. As our story involved many people, I tagged some of them – the Winnipeg Public Library (where this story started), Tommy McCarthy (who played a starring role in act 1), the Winnipeg Goldeyes (where the amazing Halle was employed), the TD Summer Reading Program (who funded the program that was put on by the library, and without whose funding, none of this would ever have happened), and the Toronto Blue Jays (who featured importantly in act 2). I subsequently requoted the piece and tagged Jamie Campbell, the Sportsnet host, who has chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), and CancerCare Manitoba (CCMB). I informally refer to Jamie with Big W and Little J as my blood cancer buddy, because those of us with blood cancer must stick together.
Jamie features prominently in act 2 of my story. He read my article and sent me a DM with the following statement: “If you’d like me to try and arrange batting practice passes for you and the kids, send me their full names. This allows field access about three hours before the game.” WOW. From a stranger. And a famous stranger. Sharing his time and connections to make memories for me and my boys. KINDNESS. Of course I said yes! What an opportunity! Jamie said that he would make the request, but that I shouldn’t tell the boys as the passes were subject to approval. So I sat back and waited, with all of my fingers and toes crossed.
In the meantime, life continued. And I had what I could only describe as “a week.” I will spare you the details, and will share only the relevant highlights. I gave a presentation on campus to the second year medical learners on Monday, September 25. After that presentation, and in a student meeting that followed, it was brought to my attention that the learners were experiencing a high level of stress following a presentation that they had attended about a financial product. They had been provided with information that they did not understand, which had been presented in a high pressure selling environment. I was not happy with the information that I was being given, so I set out on a little recon mission. Long story short, I am working on improving the process surrounding these types of presentations so that learners aren’t subject to this kind of pressure again. But it has been a highly emotional week, short on sleep, long on stress, and involving some undercover detective work. I firmly believe that if I wasn’t in the job that I have now, I would have been a spy, or at least a girl detective. I was certainly channeling my inner Nancy Drew, with a little bit of Carrie Mathison. And coincidentally, I also watched Never Been Kissed with Drew Barrymore this week. All of this will make sense in a future blog post, I promise 😊.
In this incredibly stressful week, there were moments of unexpected joy. On Monday evening, I received an email from Francis, a medical resident who has been following my blog. In his email, he said that my most recent post had been a “great heartfelt read” and that he hoped that me and my boys enjoyed the Blue Jays game. Wow. Francis – I suspect that you are reading this, and I will tell you this personally when I have time to respond to your email – yours was my first piece of fan mail, and you made my day! Medical residents get are incredibly busy people. The fact that Francis took the time to send me that email fills my heart with joy. Thank you for your kindness.
We left Winnipeg at 7:30 a.m. yesterday. The flight to Toronto was uneventful. But getting downtown and to our hotel involved many steps that aren’t required in Winnipeg (airport to home in a taxi in 20 minutes or less, depending on traffic). We took the tram to terminal 1 at Pearson, and then the UP Express to Union Station. Stopped at tourist information and got the lowdown on our planned itinerary for our 48 hours in Toronto. Went for lunch while waiting to check in to our hotel, and finally took a taxi to the hotel. We arrived at the hotel around 2:30 p.m. While at the tourist office, I received a message from Jamie Campbell, advising that we had been approved for passes for batting practice for Thursday night, and that we needed to report to the security desk at 4:00 p.m. to pick them up. So it was a quick turnaround and then we were on our way to Rogers Centre.
The whole experience was amazing. Being on the field and up close and personal with not just baseball players, but the game of baseball, as a whole, was incredible. Big W and Little J had made a thank you card for Jamie, and I asked a security guard if he could pass it along to Jamie. He had to ask Jamie’s permission first, and after he had spoken with him, he advised that Jamie would come over to get it from me. We met briefly, and Jamie asked where the boys were. He moved along the line of people and walked over to my boys and chatted with them. I’m sure that people wondered what was so special about us that Jamie Campbell would come over to say hi. I asked if I could take a photo of the boys with him, and he invited us to come up to the studio before the game and do it properly. Wow! He later came back down the line and covertly (or not so covertly when you are carrying baseballs in the pockets of your dress pants) gave the boys balls that could be signed by the players. KINDNESS.
The Jays took batting practice first. Only three players participated – Cavan Biggio, Kevin Kiermaier, and Davis Schneider – and no one signed autographs. Apparently things were tense in the clubhouse, and all energy was focused on clinching a playoff spot. This week’s games are critical to the Jays. So, while this was understandable, it was disappointing. I had been hoping that my boys could get some autographs from their favourite players. Big W had his Gausman t-shirt on, with a Bichette jersey on top. Little J was wearing his Springer t-shirt. And I was, of course, hoping for a glimpse of Bo Bichette!
While waiting for autographs, we connected with a lovely father and son who were from Kingston, where I did my PhD. The son, Carson, was a high school student, and also a baseball superfan. His dad, Harvey, was a police officer in Kingston. We had an interesting conversation, talking about baseball, and Kingston, and sharing life lessons. Harvey made a comment about us knowing Jamie Campbell, and I said that we didn’t actually know him, but that he had read my article and had offered to get us the passes for batting practice. I then shared that I had had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and that Jamie had CLL, and that we had that connection. It was initially the conversation stopper that cancer usually is. But then I made a joke. I told Harvey that I had really planned it well. That getting diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2021 was a great strategic move as it had gotten us batting practice passes in September 2023. The joke broke the ice. We all laughed. And Harvey said that he thought that I had an amazing attitude. And I appreciated that. I really try to have a positive outlook, and to try to see the good in things. Because as I will describe next, everything happens for a reason. And kindness multiplies.
After the lightly attended Blue Jays batting practice, the Yankees were out in full force. It was quite an amazing game to be attending, and the New York Yankees were a pretty good consolation prize. I don’t follow MLB in general the way that Big W does, so I wasn’t familiar with all of the Yankees players. But Big W was. Some of the less known (especially to me) players batted first, and there were whispers about whether Aaron Judge would make an appearance. The Yankee’s manager, Aaron Boone, was on the field. And Big W and our Kingston friends were excited about it. We talked about whether we could get him to come over and sign some autographs. Carson tried, unsuccessfully, to call his name and get his attention. No luck. So I used my teacher voice, and Aaron Boone turned around. And then I gestured for him to come over. He looked surprised. I gestured again. And he started walking towards us. When he got to where we were standing, I said hello, and then asked if he would take a picture with my friend, Carson, and sign his ball. He looked a little confused, and disappointed, but he did it. And then I asked if he could do the same with my boys. He did, but then quickly said that he had to get back to practice. It reminded me a bit about ordering drinks at the bar back in the day. Sometimes the ladies had more luck than the guys did with a male bartender. It was an interesting social experiment, but I was happy to pay some of kindness that I had been shown forward.
And then Aaron Judge came out. Eyes popped out of heads. People tried to get his attention, but he was focused on batting practice. As he should have been. But when he was done, he came over to where we were gathered, and started signing autographs at the start of the line. The boys moved closer, but were still at the end of the group of people who were gathered. They were waiting patiently, hoping, when a man pushed himself into the group, in front of children, and held out his ball. I was shocked by the boldness and rudeness of it. And asked him if he realized that he was pushing in front of children (not just mine) to get Judge’s autograph. His reply: “We are all here to get autographs, and everyone does it.” Wow. Disheartening. I wondered if he might back away, but he didn’t. But he didn’t get the autograph he was chasing. Judge stopped signing before he got to him, and to us. I was disappointed for my boys that they didn’t get an amazing autograph, but also pleased that this rude man hadn’t gotten it, either.
But the universe likes to shake things up, and all of a sudden Gerrit Cole appeared. And I called his name, and he came over. He signed Big W’s ball and took a picture with Big W and Little J. And also did the same with my new friend, Carson. Wow. That’s a pretty incredible fallback position.
And speaking of kindness, after we didn’t get any Blue Jays autographs, Big W had decided that he was going to use the ball that Jamie Campbell had given him and was going to try to get Yankees autographs for his dad, because the Yankees are his dad’s favourite team. After he had gotten Boone and Cole’s autographs, all he could talk about was how excited his dad was going to be to receive the ball. And planning the way that he was going to surprise him with it. So, instead of feeling disappointed that he didn’t get any Blue Jays players to sign his ball, he was off the charts happy that he was able to get the autographs for his dad. He is an amazing boy with the biggest heart. I am a proud mom.
After batting practice, we went to meet Jamie Campbell at the Sportsnet studio on the 200 level and he rocked my world again. He invited the boys to sit down at the desk and to take a picture with him. Their minds were blown, as was mine! I didn’t think that the experience could get any better, but it just had. Jamie – your kindness is so appreciated, and I will do my best to try to pay it forward. You are an amazing person and you have gained 3 Winnipeg superfans.
The rest of the night was also amazing. It was a great game. The Jays won. We sat beside a lovely couple who were also from Manitoba. They shared French fries and candy with my boys. And gave them the plastic baseball hat that their French fries had come in because they said that they didn’t have kids and wouldn’t enjoy it as much as my boys would. KINDNESS.
We also met the amazing Fatima, who is a friend of the amazing Halle from the Goldeyes, and who got us our tickets for yesterday’s game. Again, a stranger. But more than willing to share her kindness. Thank you.
We wrapped up the night at the Jays store. There were many items on their wish lists, but Big W is a strategic thinker. He said that we should wait to buy a t-shirt because if the Jays win today, they could clinch a playoff spot. In that case, there would be a playoff shirt available for sale after Friday’s game. So he wanted to wait. Smart boy. But then suddenly there was a tap on my shoulder. And a lady was holding out three Jays Shop gift cards, and offering them to me. She said that they had been part of a group and that they weren’t able to use all of the gift cards, and that she wanted my boys to have them. Amazing, and again KINDNESS.
So, I am sitting here in my hotel room, early in the morning, trying to make sense of the past 24 hours, and the past 24 months. As I said in my previous post, I believe that everything happens for a reason. But sometimes we don’t know yet what that reason is. I’m still searching for reasons. Why did the universe decide that I needed to get lymphoma in 2021? Are all of these good things happening now as a consolation prize for getting through lymphoma? Or was the kindness all around me before, but I wasn’t aware of it? Kind of like how I now notice everyone’s overbite after taking my son for an orthodontic consultation. I don’t know what the answer is, but I am going to keep trying to figure it out.
And to conclude, I wanted to go back to “the week” that I had at work. I let it get to me. People taking advantage of vulnerable students for financial gain is unacceptable to me. I am quite the mama bear when I feel like my cubs are in danger. Possibly a bit #NextLevel (to steal the Blue Jay’s slogan). But I am in a position, professionally, to help them, and to effect change. And I’m going to do just that. Because as I said, I feel that I have a debt that I need to pay forward. And after yesterday, that debt is even greater. But I am happy to help in whatever way I can, as others have helped us.
Well, we have a busy day ahead of us! We are headed to Ripley’s Aquarium and the CN Tower, and then back to Rogers Centre to line up 2 hours before the game starts to make sure that we get the sweatshirt giveaway (Big W has a plan!). I need to up my game today with my taxi and Uber and managing Toronto traffic, because apparently yesterday, I let Big W down. Feedback received, my dear son, I will do better today.
I will close with the loudest Go Jays Go! that I can type! If they clinch a playoff spot tonight, the vibe at Rogers Centre is going to be amazing. I cannot wait to be a part of it!
Life Lessons 