Events (19 to 40)
Year Nineteen
I took a year off to work and earn some money, but this year I go to university to study Linguistics. I’m thinking of becoming a BSL interpreter or maybe doing research in the acquisition of sign languages. [name_f]My[/name_f] boyfriend [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] also starts uni this year, and he’s studying Sociology.
The workload is harder than I expected, especially after being out of school for a whole year and losing my study habits, and I end up failing one of my first-year classes. Thankfully my grades in my other classes were high enough that I was still able to pass first year.
Although I gave up work to attend uni and look after [name_f]Lori[/name_f], [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] kept his job in the kennel. Partway through the year, he transfers to a cattery which is part of the same organisation. It’s a much more convenient location, which means he can get to classes quicker and spend more time with [name_f]Lori[/name_f].
Year [name_f]Twenty[/name_f]
[name_m]Jamie[/name_m] is promoted to the manager of the cattery. We still don’t have much money between us, but we ask my sister [name_f]Fawn[/name_f] to babysit for the evening and celebrate with a night on the town.
In the summer after my second year of uni, I start teaching BSL to children at an activity club. It’s the best summer of my life and I think I’ve found my calling.
Year Twenty-One
Partway through my final year of uni, I get into a car accident and my left leg is amputated above the knee. The recovery is long and hard, and my family steps up to help take care of [name_f]Lori[/name_f] while I’m out of action. I get fitted for a prosthetic but it takes a long time to get used to. I’m also disappointed to have to repeat my final year of uni, as [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I don’t have a lot of money and I was hoping to find a full-time job as soon as I graduated.
In the summer, one of Jamie’s colleagues hosts an amazing BBQ. It’s the first time I’ve gone out and socialised since the accident, and I have an incredible time!
Year Twenty-Two
[name_f]Lori[/name_f] starts school this year, and I can hardly believe how old she is! She loves her teacher and her classes, and I wish I could say the same about my uni classes. I’m taking the same modules as before my accident last year, but my favourite class has a different teacher who is really rude about my Deafness and seems to take issue with me having an interpreter in class…
We also enroll [name_f]Lori[/name_f] in swimming classes this year as it’s an essential skill for any child. She isn’t sure at first, but then she takes to the water like a fish.
Year Twenty-Three
After graduating uni with a degree in Linguistics, I get a job for a Deaf advocacy organisation. A lot of my role is just distributing pamphlets and sticking up posters, but I enjoy it nonetheless. I grow close to a colleague [name_m]Newton[/name_m] [name_m]Owen[/name_m] “Newt” [name_m]Thomas[/name_m] and realise I have romantic feelings for him! I feel terribly guilty and confess to [name_m]Jamie[/name_m], but he’s surprisingly calm about the situation and sits me down for a long talk. I realise that my attraction to [name_m]Newt[/name_m] is fleeting, but the life I’ve built with [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and the years of trust that we’ve been building since we were eleven years old are rock-solid.
To reconnect and rebuild trust, we take our first family holiday to [name_f]Malta[/name_f]. We have a wonderful time and [name_f]Lori[/name_f] spends most of her time swimming in the hotel pool.
Year Twenty-Four
I decide it’s time for a change, and dye my sandy brown hair a bright red. [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] thinks it looks great, but [name_f]Lori[/name_f] tells me I look like a stop sign.
[name_f]An[/name_f] incredible opportunity comes up at work, and after a long discussion with [name_m]Jamie[/name_m], we decide to move to the city so that I can teach BSL classes as has been my dream for the last four years. I miss seeing my family all the time, but [name_f]Isla[/name_f] and [name_f]Fawn[/name_f] are both at uni now, and it’s not that far to drive to visit my parents, [name_f]Mallory[/name_f], and my siblings [name_m]Orion[/name_m] and [name_f]Imogen[/name_f]. [name_f]Lori[/name_f] has to start at a new school, but she’s surprisingly unbothered by the idea and is excited to live in the big city.
Year Twenty-Five
[name_f]Lori[/name_f] is having trouble making friends at her new school, so I encourage her to join the local [name_f]Brownie[/name_f] group. She immediately bonds with some of the other girls and I am relieved, as it was my job that brought us to the city.
When navigating a slippery street on my crutches, I slip and break my wrist! It’s a frustrating time for me as it means I struggle to sign, so I spend a lot more time by myself.
Year Twenty-Six
With having a child in my teens, balancing university with a baby, losing my leg in a traumatic accident, and then last year breaking my wrist and struggling to communicate in the way that’s most comfortable for me, I reach a breaking point in my mental health. [name_f]My[/name_f] GP refers me to therapy and I am diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. I start attending talking therapy.
I reduce my hours at work, and as a result we have some financial worries. [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I sit down with pen and paper and try to make cut-backs in our lives, but we haven’t been this short of money since we were starting uni with a new baby. [name_f]My[/name_f] parents help out where they can, but I don’t want to ask too much of them when they have their own lives and my siblings to take care of.
Year Twenty-Seven
To represent my struggles, I get the quote “this too shall pass” tattooed on my wrist to remind myself that there are always happy moments ahead.
We attend a family gathering to celebrate [name_f]Fawn[/name_f] graduating university. [name_f]Lori[/name_f] has a great time playing with [name_m]Orion[/name_m] and [name_f]Imogen[/name_f], who are around the same age as her even though they’re her uncle and aunt!
Year Twenty-Eight
Although my mental health has been improving since I’ve been in therapy, [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] has been struggling with feeling lost and directionless lately. I thought he was just bored in his job, but he goes to the doctor and is diagnosed with depression. He starts talking therapy as well, and his doctor prescribes him antidepressants.
Unfortunately, he misses a lot of work and his job ends up firing him. It’s a huge financial hit for us and even worse for Jamie’s self-esteem. I borrow some money from my parents and take on as much overtime at work as I can.
Year Twenty-Nine
[name_m]Jamie[/name_m] applies for all sorts of jobs, but the economy is bad and he rarely makes it to interview. I wish there was more I could do to help him, but at least he’s enjoying the extra time he gets to spend with [name_f]Lori[/name_f]. He teaches her to skateboard and they spend hours at the skate park together.
Year Thirty
[name_f]Lori[/name_f] still loves skateboarding, and she’s discovered a real talent for it! She spends every spare moment practising tricks and knows all the other kids at the skate park.
In the summer, I decide that [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I need to spend some time reconnecting, as he’s been having such a difficult time these past couple of years. [name_f]Lori[/name_f] goes to stay with her grandfather, as well as [name_m]Orion[/name_m] and [name_f]Imogen[/name_f], while I take [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] on a road trip across the country. We both turned thirty this year, so it feels like an occasion to look back on all our years together and speculate about our future ahead. It’s the happiest we’ve both been in ages.
Year Thirty-One
It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while but didn’t want to bring up to [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] while he already had so much on his plate, but I can’t keep a part of myself from him any longer. I come out to him as bisexual, and he says he didn’t realise it was a secret! He tells me he’s known since we were teenagers and I clearly had a crush on his cousin [name_f]Noelle[/name_f], and I’m shocked that apparently he figured it out before I did. We laugh about it over a glass of wine and I’m glad I shared it with him.
A few weeks after that conversation, I discover that I’m pregnant with an unplanned child! [name_f]Lori[/name_f] is fourteen now, and she’s ecstatic when the baby is born and it turns out to be a baby sister for her. We name her [name_f]Cassiopeia[/name_f] [name_f]Avis[/name_f] “Cass” [name_m]West[/name_m].
Year Thirty-Two
[name_f]My[/name_f] mother starts to rapidly lose her vision, so she decides to sell her house and move in with us. She retires from her job and cares for her new granddaughter full-time, which saves on nursery costs, and I help her out in the areas of her life that she now has trouble with, like getting around town and reading.
[name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I decide we want to have another child, and we are pleasantly surprised when we find out we’re having twins! Our identical twin boys [name_m]Faraday[/name_m] [name_m]Keaton[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m] and [name_m]Jericho[/name_m] Alpine [name_m]West[/name_m] are born happy and healthy.
Year Thirty-Three
Although we aren’t planning on having another child, especially with three babies under two, I unexpectedly become pregnant not even a year after the twins are born. Sadly, I miscarry early into my pregnancy.
[name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I mourn the loss, and decide to try for another child. We are successful and welcome our rainbow baby, [name_f]Mia[/name_f] [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m].
Year Thirty-Four
[name_f]Lori[/name_f] passes her driving test, and we gift her the family car! We need a bigger vehicle to shuttle our much larger family about, so we bite the bullet and buy a minivan.
Although Jamie’s been working odd jobs since he lost his job a few years back, he decides to quit work and become a stay-at-home dad. [name_f]My[/name_f] mother still helps out as well, but with three-year-old [name_m]Cass[/name_m], two-year-old [name_m]Faraday[/name_m] and [name_m]Jericho[/name_m], and one-year-old [name_f]Mia[/name_f], they have their hands full between them. The savings we continue to make on nursery costs alone are enough to make it a viable option for [name_m]Jamie[/name_m], and the kids love having their dad around.
Year Thirty-Five
I’ve been living a sedentary lifestyle lately and I’m now starting to climb towards forty, so I join a gym and try out various activities. I have great fun rock-climbing so I start building time in my schedule to go every week. I even convince [name_f]Lori[/name_f] to join me sometimes, and it’s a fun mother-daughter bonding experience.
[name_m]Cass[/name_m] becomes obsessed with rabbits and starts begging us for one. She ropes her brothers into it as well! Eventually we cave and welcome a pair of rabbits, [name_m]Montgomery[/name_m] and [name_f]Beatrice[/name_f], into the family.
Year Thirty-Six
We win an all-expenses paid trip to Disneyland! The kids have the time of their lives and we make memories that will last forever.
Unfortunately, with the good also comes the bad. The Deaf advocacy organisation that I’ve been working for since I left university goes bust, and all of us lose our jobs. Other than some short-term work before and during uni, it’s the only job I’ve ever had, and the job market is daunting, especially since I need to find something that suits my Deafness.
Year Thirty-Seven
I find a job as a BSL interpreter, but it’s too far to commute. The house prices are cheaper in the new area so we decide to pick up stakes and move, as it will allow us to buy a bigger house. [name_m]Cass[/name_m] and [name_f]Mia[/name_f] are very excited to no longer be sharing a room, although [name_m]Faraday[/name_m] and [name_m]Jericho[/name_m] are adamant on keeping their bunkbed set-up for the time being.
[name_m]Jamie[/name_m] is under some stress this year. His parents, who have been happily married for over forty years, are having marital problems. Thankfully, they reconcile before long.
Year Thirty-Eight
I get pretty sick this year and it turns out I have pneumonia. I recover well, but it’s a long time before I feel I have my full lung capacity back.
Now we’re in the best financial position we’ve been in for a while, [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] and I decide to try for another baby, but I wasn’t expecting to become pregnant so quickly! We have a lovely little girl, [name_f]Autumn[/name_f] [name_f]Juniper[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m].
Year Thirty-Nine
I get a raise! We throw a party to celebrate and invite my siblings and their families.
I start learning American Sign Language via online classes as it’s completely different to BSL, but opens up avenues to talk to all sorts of other Deaf people. It feels good to be learning something, and I decide I want to keep my brain active as I’m getting older.
Year [name_m]Forty[/name_m]
[name_f]My[/name_f] job offers me the opportunity to go back to university and get a Master’s degree to deepen my knowledge and experience of Linguistics. I jump at the opportunity.
It seems life likes to repeat itself though, because just how I was raising [name_f]Lori[/name_f] the first time I was in uni, I find out that I’m unexpectedly pregnant again! This time it’s a boy, [name_m]Rigel[/name_m] [name_m]Perseus[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m], and I have a great support system in place that means I’m not quite as frazzled as I was with [name_f]Lori[/name_f].
Mother (68): [name_f]Dove[/name_f] [name_m]Robin[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m], nee [name_m]Townsend[/name_m] [Retired Receptionist and Stay-at-Home Grandma]
→ Tall with olive skin, curly black hair, and hazel eyes
Father (71): [name_m]Carter[/name_m] [name_m]William[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m] [Retired Computer Engineer]
→ Tall with pale skin, straight sandy brown hair, and green eyes
Ex-Stepmother (62): [name_f]Mallory[/name_f] [name_f]Esther[/name_f] [name_m]Bernard[/name_m] [Aromatherapist]
→ Tall with tanned skin, straight red hair, and green eyes
Me (40): [name_f]Sierra[/name_f] [name_f]Paloma[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m] [BSL Interpreter and Linguistics Masters Student]
→ Tall with olive skin, straight sandy brown hair, and green eyes
→ Deaf
→ Amputee (left leg above the knee)
→ Anxiety
[name_f]Sister[/name_f] (38): [name_f]Isla[/name_f] [name_f]Magnolia[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m] [Reporter]
→ Tall with olive skin, curly black hair, and green eyes
[name_f]Sister[/name_f] (36): [name_f]Fawn[/name_f] [name_f]Briella[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m] [Care Home Worker]
→ Tall with olive skin, straight black hair, and hazel eyes
Half-brother (24): [name_m]Orion[/name_m] [name_m]Cole[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m] [Law Student]
→ Tall with pale skin, straight sandy brown hair, and green eyes
Half-sister (23): [name_f]Imogen[/name_f] [name_f]Andromeda[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m] [Dressmaker]
→ Tall with tanned skin, straight sandy brown hair, and green eyes
Me (40): [name_f]Sierra[/name_f] [name_f]Paloma[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m] [BSL Interpreter and Linguistics Masters Student]
→ Tall with olive skin, straight sandy brown hair, and green eyes
→ Deaf
→ Amputee (left leg above the knee)
→ Anxiety
Husband (40): [name_m]Jamie[/name_m] [name_m]Foster[/name_m] [name_m]Price[/name_m] [Stay-at-Home Dad]
→ Short with tanned skin, curly black hair, and green eyes
→ Depression
Daughter (23): [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Emma[/name_f] “Lori” [name_m]West[/name_m] [Au Pair]
→ Short with tanned skin, straight black hair, and green eyes
Daughter (9): [name_f]Cassiopeia[/name_f] [name_f]Avis[/name_f] “Cass” [name_m]West[/name_m]
→ Tall with olive skin, straight black hair, and green eyes
[name_m]Son[/name_m] / [name_m]Son[/name_m] (8, identical twins): [name_m]Faraday[/name_m] [name_m]Keaton[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m] / [name_m]Jericho[/name_m] Alpine [name_m]West[/name_m]
→ Tall with olive skin, curly sandy brown hair, and green eyes
Daughter (7): [name_f]Mia[/name_f] [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m]
→ Short with tanned skin, curly sandy brown hair, and green eyes
Daughter (2): [name_f]Autumn[/name_f] [name_f]Juniper[/name_f] [name_m]West[/name_m]
→ Short with tanned skin, curly sandy brown hair, and green eyes
[name_m]Son[/name_m] (nb): [name_m]Rigel[/name_m] [name_m]Perseus[/name_m] [name_m]West[/name_m]
→ Short with olive skin, straight black hair, and green eyes
Theo (6)