Catherine Kenwell
Bio
I live with a broken brain and PTSD--but that doesn't stop me! I'm an author, artist, and qualified mediator who loves life's detours.
I co-authored NOT CANCELLED: Canadian Kindness in the Face of COVID-19. I also publish horror stories.
Achievements (1)
Stories (96/0)
How a Lipstick Named Gabrielle Fixed My Broken Self
If I’d broken my leg, things would have been entirely different. What is it about a plaster cast that allows strangers to ask what happened? A broken arm, from a slip on the ice. A fractured femur, the result of a skiing accident. Suddenly, the boundary of appropriate questioning breaks down into curiosity, then sympathy. Or the sharing of a similar experience, and comments about healing times and rehabilitation.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
I Discovered My True Friends When I Went a Little Cray
Since my series of brain injuries, I’ve thought a lot about friendship. I’ve learned who my friends are, and who they’re not. And I treasure relationships more than ever. I appreciate the love of my friends, but I’ve also had to distance myself from friendships that are emotionally or mentally unhealthy.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
Why My Brain Forgets Differently Than Yours
I love words. I studied Latin in school, and I never really lost my interest in languages and word origins. I keep returning to school because I’m at home in academia and I’m fond of cracking the spine of a new and potentially mind-expanding textbook. For a period after my injury, my scrambled brain couldn’t recall or identify words that I’d used or spoken thousands of times. This was doubly heart-wrenching for me, because not only are we often judged by the way we speak (and radio silence in the middle of an executive meeting is not judged highly!), but I have a genuine affection for all things literary. It hurt that I’d lost something I loved.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
After My Brain Injury, I Became a Hot Mess
I’m a hot mess. OK, I’m not hot. I’m just a mess. And it’s nothing personal. It’s a matter of housekeeping. Since my accident, my organizational skills have been hit-and-miss. Most days, and certainly when I’m out in public or engaged in the work I love, you’d never know that I have the most abhorrent, disjointed approach to tidying and cleaning my home.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
Nancy and Guinness - A Ghost Story
Friends know we have a ghost in our home. Our mischievous spirit shows up in our garden photos, is an art critic who knocks paintings and pictures from walls, and now…now it appears she prefers cats over dogs. Specifically, she loves Guinness the cat.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Petlife
My Polka-dot Princess Boots
I’m turning 60. My Dad died last month. And my dog ate my favorite boots. Let’s start with the boots. Those boots of mine had an auspicious beginning. I found them in a little shop when we were in between movies at Toronto After Dark, a horror/sci-fi film festival. I write horror, so I was already in my element, but then I discovered the boots. I was over the moon. They were buttery-soft combat boots with chains and ribbons for laces.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Families
How To Fake It When You Can't Find the Words
I tried to remember the words I wanted to speak. I couldn’t recall their meaning, so I went looking for paint. I thought maybe the colors would describe how I felt. The color I was looking for perhaps did not exist. So I was left mute, grey, without substance or adequate description; transparent—no, semi-opaque, glisteningly absent, like a spirit that couldn’t let go. Floating, yet drowning.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
Psych Ward? Not Me, I'll Just Gaily Skip Along
No, I’ll never report suicidal ideation. And no, I’ve never taken myself to the hospital to be admitted, although I’ve seriously considered and attempted suicide countless times. I know this is wrong. But I have a bigger fear of psych wards than I do suicide.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Psyche
Buttons, Buttons
“Buttons, buttons, who's got the buttons”…it’s a refrain from an old children’s game that few recognize nowadays. It harkens back to a time when children weren’t parked in front of computers or TVs; when gaggles of youngsters played together, with whatever they had on hand.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Motivation
We Didn't Get the Dog We Wanted
Sometimes we don’t get the dog we want; rather, we get the dog we need. Case in point: Sunny, a part-border-collie rescue dog, returned to foster three times before he came to live with us at 10 months of age. Sweet but traumatized, he was a dog who needed a stable environment. We were frustrated by his excessive neediness and fear-based aggression. As a border collie, he was whip-smart and learned quickly, but we never believed he would end up teaching us to love, grieve, and be more empathetic.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Petlife
Ginkgo
The ginkgo, with its delicate fan-shaped leaves, has always seemed to me a little exotic to be growing alongside everyday maples and oaks. I suppose it’s because I knew ginkgo as a healer years before I saw my first tree. Ginkgo biloba is a stalwart in traditional medicine, often recommended for mood disorders, memory problems, and inflammation. Healers, in plain sight. Magnificent.
By Catherine Kenwell2 years ago in Families
