Sara Taylor

"On February 14, 1974 nine month pregnant Pat Taylor felt a rumble in her belly - guess what - she wasn't hungry . . . ."

Sara Ann Taylor was born Feb 14, 1974 to Ralph Lee Taylor and Patricia Ann Taylor (and Jennifer Lee Taylor - sister)). Sara was born at Vancouver General Hospital to ensure she would be a Canadian citizen as her mother was Canadian but her father American, and the Vietnam War was going on at the time. Ha! Ha! Uncle Sam!

Sara states that the first two years of her life are a blur. The Taylor's took up residence in a beautiful log home on a tree farm in Arlington,Washington.

At three years old Sara began attending Burnhill School, an alternative hippie school started by several individuals including her parents. Sara learned to read here sooner than she would have at public school. Ha! Ha! Mr. System!

For her fourth birthday Sara got to go to Hawaii where unfortunately she had to suffer though coconut birthday cake when she specifically asked for "CHOCOLATE NOT COCONUT!!!"

Around five years of age Sara fell out of a second story hay-loft only to be saved from serious injury by landing on Rosie the Percheron's head. Ha! Ha! Mr. Death!

In 1980 the Taylor family moved north when the co-owners of the tree farm decided to use chemical spraying on the trees. Ha!Ha! Mr. Carcinogen! The Taylor Family moved to the Precipice Valley near the Chilcotin town of Anahim Lake, British Columbia:

"At the Precipice we lived in relative isolation. Anahim Lake was 8 hours away by team and wagon, 4 hours away by car (seasonal & weather permitting), and in the winter by sleigh we rarely went out. One other family (the Glen's) lived two miles away with two children my and Jenny's age (Mandy and Raine). We had our own garden. We had no electricity, no indoor plumbing, but we had gravity flow water and a telephone left over from World War Two phone lines that ran to Bella Coola.

"Mom and Dad bought text books and taught us at home

"In 1981 we got our first pets beside horses, two lovely cats named "Baby Ditties" and "Picanuni" and then that summer I got my first pony - Gypsy - the best horse in the entire world, and my second best friend, Raine Glen being my best friend. Also visited Barkerville Historic Park with cousins. (This will be important later . . . .)

"In February 1982 I fell face first on some jagged ice and cut up my nose and upper-lip very badly. Mom and Dad taped me up with their home medical kit. My first scars and my first experience with shock.

In 1983 Sara's father introduced solar power to the Precipice Ranch. Ha!Ha! Mr. B.C. Hydro!

In 1984 Gypsy broke her leg and had to be shot. "Still this is one of the saddest days of my life".

1985 - 1986 - Go to Vancouver, B.C. for an experimental year in public school - AHHHHH! Comments on experience: academically successful; socially inept; teacher a jerk; glad to go home.

March 1986 - maternal grandfather William Thompson dies of colon cancer.

Fall 1986 - Back in the saddle again! "Two years after Gypsy's death I create a unique and successful bond with Dad's crazy horse "Spook" - a new friendship is born".

Winter 1986 - parents decide to go into the theatre business at Barkerville Historic Park. Also this winter Picanuni was killed by a wild animal.

1987 - move away from the Precipice Valley permanently and move to Vancouver and Barkerville/Wells- Dad splits time between ranch and Vancouver and Barkerville.

First summer job at the Theatre Royal, Barkerville. Boys, puberty and make-up.

Fall 1987 - Sara is enrolled in Lord Byng High School in Vancouver "for 5 years of on-and-off again hell".

"For the next five years I went to school and worked in Barkerville in the summers. Here's some highlights of those years:

1990: stopped going to school due to clinical depression probably caused by the culture shock of moving to such a big city from such a rural environment. Went to therapy with Dr. Stern - nice guy. returned to school in Grade 11.

Fall 1990: paternal grandfather Del Taylor dies of heart failure.

Spring 1992: Graduates high school with Honours and awards in Drama and Choir.

Spring 1993: travels Europe with sister Jenny for 6 weeks.

Summer 1993: meets Brad Gibson "Love of my life".

Fall 1993 : attends first year Theatre at University of Victoria.

Spring 1994: discover that I have "vulvar vestibulitis" - a rare vulvar disease that effects 1/100 women. Over the next four years Sara will undergo several different typs of treatment including 5 surgical procedures (two of which were laser treatments, two vestibulectomies and one marsupialization of the Barthleman's Gland).

"Also at this point in my life my involvement in Barkerville changed as I went from front of house staff to street performer (1994 - 1997). I play a character named Kate Hartley - an American Hurdy Gurdy Dancing Girl in love with miner Jack Beeman (played by Brad Gibson - go figure).

1996: "Baby Ditties" faithful pet and companion succumbs to old age and in put to sleep.

Skip to 1997 . . . . Finished four years at UVIC, 1.5 credits short of graduating with a BFA in Theatre (Acting).

Accomplishments: playing 'Herodius in "Salome"; being cast in "The Learned Ladies" directed by Bill Glasgow; getting through two years of Kazersize; and performing in my own one woman show "The Girlhood of Shakespeare's Heroines".

Spring 1997 : Return to Barkerville to do Spring Show and Street Theatre. Very worn out from school and constant health problems and disappointments due to vulvar vestibulitis. Early in the season Sara suffered an emotional breakdown. She flew to Vancouver and was diagnosed as clinically depressed. Due to this diagnosis she was prescribed Paxil. Oddly enough just after this Brad and Sara adopt a lovely little female kitten named - "Paxil". Sara now has two forms of anti-depressant: the pill kind and the adorable fuzzy kind.

August 1997: Find a lump while stretching: Sorry Mr. Death, I shouldn't have laughed.

In my future I plan to marry Brad, return to Barkerville to work, maybe continue acting or maybe I will find, after this experience is over, I want to do something to help people who have to go through what I am going through now. Mostly I want to be healthy and happy.

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