| About the Author |
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| I was the second child for two wonderful parents. I grew up for the first 11 years of my life with my three brothers and one sister in Hamilton, Ontario. |
| While I was growing up in Hamilton, we would often vacation as a family at Sauble Beach and in points nearby. At that time I had not yet perfected my geography skills and felt that these places were "way up north". Later, when I began to study maps, I realized that these towns were merely a 2.5 - 3 hour drive from Hamilton. |
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| After my grade 6 year at Glen Brae in Hamilton, my father decided to retire up north and my family purchased a lot overlooking Lake Huron. My mother continued her career as a nurse at the local hospital and we settled in to a new and somewhat calmer life far away from "the big city". After a few years in the area my father passed away and our close knit family grew even closer. |
| A Lake Huron Lighthouse... |
| Images of Hamilton, ON |
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| Fortunately for me, even though shortly after my father's death, my mother allowed me to participate in the Rotary Youth Exchange. My exchange to France solidified my love for travel, geography and our ever-changing world. While abroad I had the opportunity of meeting some womderful people and learning a beautiful language - the knowledge of which would chance the course of my life. |
| La Capitole, Toulouse, France |
| What more can I tell you...at the end of my year in France I toured Europe, then returned to Canada. After a long readjustment period (I think my mother still thinks I havn't settled back into life here), I managed to complete high school and celebrated with a six-week tour around France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Greece. It was on the Greece portion of my trip with a friend from home, Vanessa, that I met my good friend, Will, a geography and history teacher from British Columbia. Perhaps one of the most memorable and mentionable parts of the trip was accepting my admission to the University of Waterloo from a payphone in Paros. Since that day, I have lived in several cities and countries, but now call Toronto, Ontario my home. It is here that I enjoy a career teaching grade 7 and 8 students. |
