The day I was born, the first thing my mother noticed was my one dimple, and she called it my birthmark.  My mother was sick and bed-ridden thereafter.  Until we emigrated from Kingston, Jamaica to Canada, my older sister raised me and took care of my mother who became sick from a contaminated Earth. 

The choice between Canada and the U.S. was easy—universal healthcare.  My father moved and immediately found an engineering position at North York Branson Hospital, and sent for us as soon as he was established.  We were searching for a cure.   

I grew up in the Ontario hospital system.  As a kid, I was adopted as part of the staff as a dietetic attendant.  My father pushed up to work in the hospital and trained us to be versed in microsystems.  He trained us to build networks.  I was 15, climbing in the ductwork and walls in Chapters, Indigo and Coles all over Canada because I was small and agile.  As a family, we were working two careers so we could take care of my mother.   

After years of hospital experience, I eventually found a place as unit clerk secretary of North York General.  It was in this role that I really began to understand ALL that happened at a hospital; until then, I was I naïve about the day-to-day at North York General, at hospitals in general.  I was no longer shielded from the harshness of life.  Meanwhile at home, my mother grew sicker.  

Working amongst many doctors, only one exposed me to a philosophy which I hole very dear.  Dr. Salsberg, a doctor of medicine and naturopathy said, “Prescriptions are for the terminally ill and the elderly.  Everyone else deserves naturopathy.”  It was at this time that I helped my then boyfriend and his mother run a lawn and garden business.  His mother taught me to grow, and I helped them nurture the lake front communities they served. 

Soon after I moved on from North York General, and pursued an education and took on a full time role gardening.  The business started to flourish.  

At home, despite all efforts, my mother passed away.   

Gardening brought life and renewal to me at a time when a darkness was shrouding my family and I.  Gardening is my caretaker today.