A couple of months ago my sister Margie suggested us girls do something that on the surface seemed absolutely ridiculous. “Let’s go to Vancouver for a day,” she suggested.
If we went for it on the day she proposed we could celebrate Margie and her twin sister Jan’s 55th birthday together and take in the very last musical that Jan will produce, she has decided to retire as an elementary school music teacher at the end of June. A great flight price made the decision easy, we were going, Linda, Jodi and Margie from Saskatoon, me via Regina. Margie suggested that we surprise Jan, I have mixed feelings about surprises, but with all that Jan had to keep track of already the surprise idea felt okay.
I thought maybe the surprise had been leaked when I posted on Facebook that I needed a ride to Regina on Monday. Jan, whom we wanted to surprise, commented on that post “whatcha up to?” I thought, “oh she knows something and she is fishing!” Margie later told me there was great concern from the Saskatoon group that I had started the unraveling of our secret. My reply to her comment was a detailed description of why I needed that ride, and it wasn’t a lie. Our friends from Halifax had taken my car to the Regina airport on Friday, I needed to pick it up. She didn’t need to know that my car would stay over an extra day so that I too could fly! My ride left early Monday, Dee and I had a great visit and it seemed like a miracle when we were already arriving at Jill’s apartment in Regina. Jill and I had time to shop, and go out for lunch and supper. At supper I got a fortune cookie that underscored the importance of what we were up to.
Jill tucked me in early, I figured with no luggage to check I could arrive at the airport at 5am for a 6am flight. Oh dear. I was a bit optimistic. This is me at 5:17am, in a long slow moving line at security. (Although clearly the empty lanes behind me reveal it could have been a much longer line, it was long for Regina.) My outfit reveals poor color matching. I didn’t care, the sweater was only for the morning and was a nod to my Dad who first wore it back in the 60s. He would have been thrilled by the day that was set to unfold.
They boarded our flight very early, so as my bag and laptop were flagged for extra screening I could hear the Westjet lady calling for me and several others over the PA system. By the time security figured out the problem, a pocket knife attached to my car keys, and two humongous bolts in the bottom of my backpack I was hearing, “would Katherine Kyle PLEASE report to gate 6!” The knife was small, I was allowed to keep it, the bolts were pitched, I apologized, ran for the gate and straight onto the plane. A brain fogged ranch wife can sincerely answer the question “do you have anything sharp in your bag?” with a sweet “no, I don’t think so” when calving season induced weariness is the reality and the day your husband sent you off to buy bolts “just like this” is a distant memory. I had no idea those bolts were in there. Pretty uneventful flights saw me getting off the plane in Vancouver at 9:30am and straight into the arms of Margie, Jodi and Linda. Our adventure together had begun.
We enjoyed Vancouver until noon when we showed up at Janet’s school. We had called the secretary when the plans were being made to get assurance that we could actually come in and see the dress rehearsal. She was our partner in crime when she paged Mrs. Nordstrand to please come to the office. She took a video that included this moment when we all emerged from a side hallway and started singing happy birthday.
Margie brought this banner, something she ordered online. Here we are, the four travelers and Jan, after she had recovered from the shock.
I have absolutely loved the rare chances I have had over the years to see Janet in action. There is something I find so compelling when I get to see anyone living out their giftedness, but when music is involved, and family, it is that much more stirring. Jan is gifted. The picture below was among my favorite moments from “The Wizard of Oz”, Jan with arms held high as she guided her students in what was a fantastic finale, including all of this cast. The other cast had their dress rehearsal in the morning. Jan’s husband retired earlier this year, he took on the challenging role of sound co-ordinator and did much set work. He is beside Jan.
Jan and Ray’s dog Belle played Toto in the opening part. It is ridiculous how proud I was of my niece dog. She did so well.
Jan worked closely with many staff to make this musical happen, it is a passion she shares with many to give kids these opportunities. It was amazing to see the entire student body become involved as things unfolded. This finale was so big and deep.
The gift of the day was time among my people, the people I have spent special days with for my entire life. They know me in a unique way and of course are a concrete connection to my Mom and Dad. In this next photo my cousin Jodi sits beside me at an outdoor patio where we had supper altogether and could include Belle. We were lucky Jan and Ray’s schedule was clear after school.
We had a “fight” about whether Jan would drive us to the airport or we would Uber there as was our plan. We wanted Jan to rest. She wanted to squeeze in more minutes. I am glad she won the fight. We had fun in the car and got some memorable photos at the airport.
I get a little mushy sometimes, I know it’s not always ideal. But the joy and tightness in this last picture speaks to me. The bond that twin life can hold is something. We have so many family pictures that catch moments like this, our old pictures reveal two little girls finding their way in the world. All of us are now REALLY launched, on our own, our parents aren’t here to help us be friends. But…. a great seat sale and a single day off allowed for family time. When I researched the symbolism of the yellow brick road it had varying meaning. So I will claim my take on it. To follow the yellow brick road is to find one’s way home. As I get older, home is not so much a place as it is a feeling. It was such a deep good feeling to concretely express love for our Janet. That spot in Inman school where she held her heart as she beheld us kindv’e felt like…. home. On June 3rd the yellow brick road had some tense moments, by the end of the day I had had to run straight onto two flights. It all reminds me that family takes work, there is sweat involved, there are questions of safety and security to be felt through. There is turbulence. I am thankful we have found our way to a sense of home in each others’ presence and knowing what that means, how significant that is, we take that back to where we each live and work.
As Far As The Eye Can See 