Jennifer van Amerom,  —

Trying something new will always intimidate me. While my head might feel prepared, my body doesn’t always cooperate. This year my husband and I agreed to take in a homestay teenager who is studying dance at the same studio as our young daughter, Sophie. Sydney, our 15-year-old homestay daughter, is…

During my transverse myelitis attack in 2009, I lost feeling and control in the lower half of my body. My medical team determined that I needed a spinal tap to reduce the fluid buildup. The procedure was done right in my hospital room, and the only condition was that…

I know it’s not a popular choice, but I enjoy sweet and tart zinfandel. I like the delightful pink color, and rosé is a snobby word that’s fun to say. Zinfandels should be enjoyed in the warm summer months, and are accompanied best by seafood. Maybe it’s just the…

“Let’s talk about sex, baby/ Let’s talk about you and me/ Let’s talk about all the good things/ And the bad things that may be/ Let’s talk about sex.” — Salt-N-Pepa My friends and I used to giggle every time this song came on the radio in the early 1990s.

I’ve been so exhausted before that I’ve said, “No one will know if I leave the kitchen looking like this.” Dirty dishes will be piled up in the sink, while clean dishes are still in the dishwasher. A sticky substance might appear on the counter, but thankfully the black marble…

At one point in my life, I thought I wanted to be a flight attendant. As a first-generation Canadian, my parents, who immigrated here in 1968, told me stories of foreign countries and the people, the unique food, and the different languages. For most of my childhood, I grew up…

My mom was incredibly angry with me, and rightfully so, the day I lost my retainer. We fed four kids on one income, yet somehow afforded braces and then a retainer, which I was supposed to wear all the time except when eating. I remember playing with the retainer in…

It rained the day before and after, but on the day we buried Dad, the overcast weather parted for a picturesque blue sky, complete with rolling white clouds. For mid-April, it could’ve been a cold, miserable day, matching our mood. Instead, the sun warmed us, so we didn’t need…

I have a theory: I’m convinced you can scream (almost) anything at a baseball game. The more obscure the cheer, the greater it is. “You call that peanut butter?!” “Turn ’em upside down!” “Let’s go, captain! Take ’em out to sea!” (This one is way more fun when said in…

When I walk through the doors of Satay Sate, a local Indonesian restaurant, the aromas that hit me instantly remind me of my childhood. I first ventured there after my dad died, and I was brought to tears at my first bite. It was like they had stolen Dad’s recipes.