Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Fall is on the way.

Today I sit here....still healing.......and see from my window tiny hints that fall is on it's way. A breeze blows through the trees and as the leaves rustle a few early yellow leaves let go of the branch that has given them life for a year and swirl to the ground. Fall is my favorite time of year. This time of year the tempatures are "just right", the leaves start to turn shades of golden yellow, dark burgandy and firey red orange. Although it does not last long, the world is bright, beautiful and more peaceful. And, the TN Volunteers run onto the field once again bringing chills and thrills to TN folk like me. Festivals and county fairs are held every weekend. Pumplins, apples, cider, corn stalks tied in bundles, hay bales here and there are signs that fall is near. I LOVE IT! I open the door and take a deep breath, my heart races at the thought of what is to come......fall.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

"IT'S A BOY!"

Forty nine years ago today I was very pregnant and had just made the long drive to Rockford, IL to start a new life. Like many others in 1960, my husband had lost his job and had heard from friends that relatives of theirs had found work in the north in Rockford....so, on September 1st of 1960, we packed a few items, said goodbye to our families and hit the road. My eyes were red and swollen from all the tears I had shed the night before after saying goodbye to my Mom, Dad and younger sister. Other than a little time in college it was the first time I would be living that far away from them. Sept. 2nd we had settled into a tiny little motel room. Bright and early the morning of Sept. 2nd, my husband called to set up a meeting with the family members of the TN friends to discuss the work situation. Because I had promised my Mother I would see an OBGYN as soon as possible, my husband ask the people if they could recommend a Dr. and they did better than that.....the wife called her Dr. and, miracles of miracles, the office told her that they had just had a patient cancel and to have me come in at two that afternoon. The Dr. was in his late sixties and was very kind and soft spoken which was a blessing to a scared young southern girl like me who was in a strange new place. After a complete examination, he told me that I should deliver in about six weeks, gave me some vitamins and phamplets and sent me on my way. I was to see him again in a week. On the way back to the motel, we stopped at a little diner and there I had my very first pizza. After dinner, my husband dropped me off to rest while he went to visit the TN friends to discuss work. I sprawled across the bed and started reading the phamplets I had been given. I started having little pains in my lower stomach and thought it was probably this new food, pizza, I had eaten. An hour later the pain had not stopped but had grown worse. Three hours later I was so terrified I decided to call my husband, however, he had not given me a phone number and all I knew was the last name of the people he was visiting. I took out the phone book and started calling everyone with that last name. Another miracle..........the fifth name I called was the place he was visiting. They all thought I was just having false labor and told me to lie down and rest some more and try to calm down. A pregnant woman realizing that her water had broken is pretty sure it is NOT false labor. I called the number on the card the nurse had given me and she told me to come straight to St. Anthony's hospital......which we soon did. Now, remember, I was a young southern gal from a small town in TN who had never personally known anyone who was Catholic let alone a Nun or Priest. When I checked into the hospital I realized that the nurses were Nuns....the habits were a pretty good clue. In those days, nobody was allowed to be with a woman in labor.....you were all alone. I remember the Nuns coming in from time to time shaking my arm and even giving me a little slap or two and telling me to be quiet because my screams were scaring the other women in labor. I remember thinking, "I thought Nuns were susposed to be kind". These were not. After many hours I heard a baby cry, felt a mask over my face and was put to sleep. I woke later to find myself in a room with curtains drawn. I called out for someone and a Nun came in and explained that because my baby was early and so tiny (five lbs.) he would have to spend a few days in an incubator, but, she took me down to the nursery to see my new baby boy. There in a glass box I saw a precious tiny baby.....my baby. I wanted to hold him so badly but I could not. It was not until days later that I got to hold him for the first time. I will never forget when the Nun placed him in my arms and told me not to touch his head because due to the fact that he was early the bones had not yet come together. I was trembling. He was so tiny but yet had such a determined look on his face and his little hands were clinched into two tiny fists as if to say, "Come on world, I'm ready for you." I thought I had know what it was like to love someone, but, the love I felt for this tiny baby boy was beyond anything I had ever felt. He had golden yellow hair that stuck out all over his tiny head and the nurses nicknamed him, "Ducky" because they said his head looked like a little duckling. For the next two years of my life, until his younger brother came, he and I spent almost every minute together.......talking, playing and enjoying each other. If you look up to the left on this page under the title of "followers" you will see a set of big eyes.......those big eyes belong to my little "Ducky" LOL who is now a very talented man living in Chicago, IL. It is hard to get a serious picture of him because he is always making funny faces......but, making people laugh and feel better is one of the things he does best. What a ride we have had.....ups and downs......and although I know he is a grown man, when I look into his face I still see a glimpse of that little boy I used to know....my fitst born......... "Ducky". LOL.