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Kamlesh: GGFE
melissa blackie: hi krissy! i'm so glad it's turned out well in the end!lots of love & best wishes for continued recovery
Lornette Johnson: I am so sorry to hear of your eye surgery, but I am happy to know that God took care of you and you are doing much better. My prayers are with you. Krissy, you are such a strong and faithful young lady. I have always admired you. I pray that you continue to trust and depend on Jesus. I know that you will, because God has shown you that He is all that you have. Thank you so much for sharing your story. It has made me so strong. I am happy. May God continue to bless and guide you always. Lots of l
Krishana: Click on my name to return to my website.

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Monday, August 22nd 2005

5:56 PM

Never Saw This One Coming!

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Never Saw This One Coming!
 
This summer has definitely been one of the most different ones I've experienced in a LONG time. You see, I had many events planned (as I had in past years). There were a couple of weddings to attend, I was going to play with the orchestra at Camp Meeting, take a course for work, program for Vacation Bible School at church, teach summer school and visit  Calgary again.
 
However, sometimes our plans don't turn out the way we hoped.
 
In fact, I didn't even get to finish teaching my second group of Grade 2s in the month of June!
 
One morning in June, I decided to play a "game" with my eyes. I opened one eye at a time, focused on my hand, and checked out my peripheral vision. When it was time to do this with my right eye, I realized that something was wrong...there seemed to be a "black curtain" covering the top half of my hand! Pretty soon, as I focused the right eye on objects around my room, I learned that I could only see through the bottom-half of that eye!
 
I was worried. I don't normally like to worry my parents if I don't feel well, but I chose to tell them right away. I mean, I was worrying myself.
 
A few days later, I took a day off of work. I explained to my students that I had to visit my eye doctor the next day. I even explained the situation in simple terms to them. Children are naturally empathetic. One little guy said, "Maybe you need new glasses. Glasses will always help you see better."    I informed the kids that I'd let them know how things went on Thursday when I returned.
 
Little did I know that I would not see my students again for another THREE WEEKS!
 
My optometrist thoroughly checked my eyes in order to assess the situation. After a few eerily silent moments during his testing, I heard him breathe in deeply and sigh. "I'll be back..." he said, as he disappeared through the doors. What in the world is this about, I thought. Perhaps it was even worse than I imagined.
 
He said he believed that I had a "retinal detachment" in the right eye, which was preventing my eye from seeing all that I was normally able to see. He took pictures of my eye with a special camera and showed me that there was a "tear" on the retina. I was amazed at the technology.
 
I was sent to the emergency ward at St. Michael's Hospital downtown. I've been driving for years, but never wanted to drive alone on the Don Valley Parkway. Highway driving is fine for me, but the DVP simply seemed like crazier driving. With the timeframe given, I had no other choice but to travel on the DVP in order to get to the hospital. No one would imagine how much I prayed just to drive on it! Prayers are answered, though. At 3pm (which is pretty much the start of rush hour), the DVP was almost entirely clear! 
 
I waited a total of 6 hours at the emergency. They didn't really see anything wrong, in the end, but still booked me to see a retinal specialist in the Opthamology Department the next day. I drove back home at 11pm just wondering what the next day would bring.
 
Thursday, June 9, 2005. Another day of waiting at the opthamology department. There were tonnes of eye tests. Tonnes of drops put into my eye. After many hours of tests and waiting, the doctor said that it truly was a "detached retina" and that I had to have surgery. I was fine with his response, for I had prayed for strength and faith the days before if surgery would be the result.
 
"Ok, so the surgery could be booked in about four weeks because that's when I'll finish school..." 
 
"No, it has to be done soon...As in tomorrow. We can't wait..." was the response.
 
"Why so soon?" was my naive question.  "What will happen if we were to wait?"
 
"Well, you'd probably go completely blind in the right eye."
 
SILENCE. SHOCK. HUH? How did THIS happen? I was just doing normal things at the beginning of the week! I don't understand...
 
The doctor's words hit me like a slap in the face. When I met my mom in the waiting room, I couldn't help it. I just broke down and cried. The doctor's words simply frightened me. I couldn't believe it. Just couldn't believe it.
 
Friday, June 10, 2005. Another long day of waiting. This time, it was in my hospital room. The surgery was to take place at 8pm, but they came for me 2 hours earlier. They wheeled me down to the operating room in a wheelchair. If it wasn't for a wise friend who spoke to me the night before my surgery, I would have been shaking all the way down the hall to the operating room (thanks, Nat!)  The room was so cold...everything was shiny, metallic. They told me to get up onto the operating table and then they put on the oxygen mask. Pretty soon, the anesthetic was started. As I felt it start to work, I stared at the large lamp above my head and said these words..."It's all in your hands now, Lord..." and fell asleep.
 
The surgery lasted 2 hours. They did a procedure called, a "Scleral Buckle". Touching the retina would be too dangerous since it's so delicate, and so this procedure was what they deemed best. I stayed the night in the hospital and was discharged the next day after they removed the surgery patch.
 
June 11th onwards was the hardest part---RESTING. That's all I was supposed to do. People who know me WELL, know that I don't know how to "rest" very well.  I'm one who's always on the go, so to be forced to sit still, sleep most of the day etc., was horrifying to me. Perhaps I even cried more over the fact that I had to REST.
 
I got to visit my students the second-last day before school, but even by that time (3 weeks later), my eye was still shut closed. When it was opened, the vision in the right eye was extremely blurry; almost like I was watching things from under water. At the beginning, I was only able to detect splotches of colour, not shapes. It was very scary. It truly gave me a new appreciation for vision.
 
June passed. July passed. I slowly saw mprovements.
 
It's now mid August. Although the eye is not what it used to be, I am more than grateful for what it is! I have a new set of glasses, and they do help me see much better. I could have lost the sight in that eye, and that's something that I will always remember. I believe in everyday miracles. I do believe that God was working one out for me that Sunday morning when I strangely decided to play that little "game" that would enable me to check out my vision.
 
Life is full of lessons. I believe that everything happens for a reason...there are no coincidences. I've learned many lessons this summer:
 
I've learned that I've just got to take one day at a time. Enjoy the everyday, simple instances much more than I had in the past.
 
I've learned how precious SIGHT really is. After coming so close to losing mine, I can honestly say that it's a GIFT from GOD, one that I'm grateful to Him for granting me.
 
I have most certainly learned that I must view "RESTING" as something important. I was going so strong, that I do believe God allowed this situation to occur in order for me to REST. Perhaps, He saw that I was so stubborn to do so; perhaps He knew that I wouldn't CHOOSE to rest unless I had no other choice. For this, I am thankful. I have never had as much rest in my life as I had this summer!
 
I've learned that it's not worth my time stressing over silly, little things.
 
I've learned that it's not the best idea to try and be dependent on self alone. If it weren't for my absolutely AMAZING parents this summer, I would not have gotten through it all! I love you both, so much! You've ALWAYS been there for me and I thank God everyday for you.
 
With all these lessons, I look forward to starting another year of teaching with a new group of students. I look forward to tossing out stressful situations and just relying on God to see me through.
 
Thanks for reading (if you've even gotten through to reading this far!) God bless and take care!
 
Addendum:
People who never knew of this situation always shake their head in wonder.
 
“Your eyes don’t look any different,” they say.
 
“You’re right. When you look at my eyes, you don't see anything different. However , what I see now is the biggest change of all…in so many ways.”
 
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Wednesday, August 10th 2005

12:46 AM

An Unexpected Summer Holiday (August 2005)

I haven't written in this journal for a long time. I intend to update it with all that happened this summer holiday. Let's just say that I never expected it, but I am grateful to God for seeing me through this situation (and continuning to help me through it).

Check back soon for a more detailed entry.

God bless!

Kris

 

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Sunday, January 2nd 2005

3:57 PM

Happy New Year!

Today is Sunday, January 2, 2005. A new year. What does it have in store for us this time? We can only wait and see. Trusting in God alone will help us to make it through.

2004 was a very interesting year for me. It was my first complete year of teaching Grade 2. I started with my new teaching position, a Grade 2 class, on Monday, January 5, 2004. It was a big challenge to start a new position in the middle of the school year...especially after another teacher started the schoolyear with them. Nevertheless, I was happy for the challenge, and grateful to God for the opportunity to finally be a Grade 2 teacher. For that reason, I can say, "Thank you, Lord, for blessing me with the fulfillment of a life-long dream." I just finished Term 1 with my new group of students and had a wonderful time with them. I look forward to working with them for the remainder of this schoolyear.

Last year, I was also able to visit one of my best friends, Aubrey, in Calgary, Alberta. It was our first vacation together and simply more than I ever expected! The trip is outlined in the photo album on my website. It's also documented in the first journal entry on this same page (see below). My other best friend, Michelle, started her new teaching job in London, England. As it is for any first-year teacher, it was a challenging experience, but she made it through first term! She came to visit in the summer of 2004 and it was great to see her after such a long time away from home.

2004 was also special because I attended a Christian Women's Conference in September. When I first heard about it, I really wasn't interested. After my experiences there, I couldn't stop talking about how wonderful it really was. It was held in Niagra Falls, Canada. It was a beautiful weekend of workshops and seminars. I had such a blessed time there, my friend Nat and I decided to attend a Young Women's Conference held in Ottawa (Ontario) in November! There, we met some amazing new people and also had a spirit-filled time. I was reluctant to attend the first one, but now I'm spokeperson #1 to advise everyone to attend a similar conference in future!

The 2004 Christmas holiday season brought a sad reminder of how our lives are not our own, and can be taken away at any time. The Tsunami disasters in Southern Asia took away 130,000 lives of people in 11 different countries. The numbers will still rise in the coming weeks. Citizens and tourists in these countries went through an absolutely terrible ordeal and are in desperate need of help. In this dark moment however, it's amazing to see the human spirit; pepole worldwide are sending money to assist those who need it most. Tomorrow, my class and I will be running our own fundraiser to collect money for the victims of the Tsunami. As little as we may collect, I want them to know that we all can help others in some way or form.

It is my prayer that 2005 will be a blessed and fruitful year for us all. Please continue to keep me in your prayers, as you are all mine. All the best for 2005. God bless!

Krishana

 

 

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Tuesday, August 31st 2004

1:18 AM

Tuesday, August 31st, 2004

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WOW! I can't believe that today is the last day of August! In my eyes, it's officially the last day of summer. Once September hits, everyone returns completely to school mode.   

I'm looking forward to a new year with a new class. It will be very interesting (not to forget, lots of fun) getting to know a whole new set of students.

 

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Thursday, August 12th 2004

11:56 PM

What a Wonderful Week!

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From August 3rd-10th, 2004, I visited my best friend, Aubrey, in Calgary, Alberta. It was an awesome vacation, that surprisingly didn't go too quickly. I had the chance to spend time with one of my best friends, meet her family and friends, do some touring around town and much more. Even though we were always busy, it was all a very relaxing experience!

Aubrey and I created our own "Itinerary" to guide us through the week. To our delight, we were able to do pretty much EVERYTHING we planned. Thanks be to God for that! Here are some of the things we got to do during this week:

  • Visit Olive Garden twice
  • Spend time with her other best friend, Brandi
  • Meet Aubrey's family members out west!
  • Meet many of Aubrey's friends in Calgary
  • Ate lunch with very malicious gophers at Sicomee Lake
  • Drove to British Columbia and visited the Fairmont Hot Springs
  • Tasted a "Screamer" for the first time! (Soft Ice Cream and Slurpee)
  • Hiked Johnston's Canyon
  • Stayed at the Caribou Lodge Resort in Banff for one night
  • Saw the Canadian Rockies! They're BEAUTIFUL!
  • Visited the Central Calgary Seventh-day Adventist church on the Sabbath I was there
  • Visited TWO spas! ("Kerei Salon and Spa" and "Krysalis" Salon and Spa).
  • Had a Veg Night; watched 2 movies called 50 FIRST DATES and EVER AFTER
  • Dinner at THE Cheesecake Cafe (Delicious!)
  • Got to attend one of Aubrey's vocal lessons, as well as a dance rehearsal for a future show
  • Helped Aubrey and her Tita Liza create and put together Wedding Shower invitations for their friend
  • Tried Huckleberry Jam for the first time
  • Simply had a GREAT TIME!

I look forward to visiting Calgary in the near future!

 

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