On the Eve of My Son's Birthday

Every year, on the eve of my children’s birthdays, I find myself reliving the day before they were born.

Today is the eve of my son’s birthday, and as I moved through the ordinary actions and activities of the day, I was carried back 33 years.

I remember that it was cloudy. I was sitting on the front porch of our new house when a neighbor mom and her toddler daughter stopped by to say hello and see how I was doing. I also remember reading the morning paper and seeing a color picture of my work friend George and his beautiful wife. The day before, they had won $10 million in the New Jersey lottery. We called to congratulate them, and they turned it right around and said that we were the lucky ones because we were about to welcome our beautiful baby boy.

We had spaghetti for dinner.

After dinner, around 7:00 p.m., I began to feel the pains while I was giving my daughter her bath and getting her ready for bed. I told her that when she woke up in the morning, she would have a new brother.

As the evening went on, the pains grew stronger. We called my mother-in-law to come spend the night with my daughter. By the time she arrived, the pains were so strong that while she made small talk in the living room, I was gripping the arm of the couch.

We drove to Overlook Hospital in Summit, New Jersey. It was very foggy, and we could barely see the road ahead. There was a detour to the highway, but thankfully we knew that ahead of time. The pains were incredible.

When we arrived at the hospital, I was admitted and placed in a “geriatric” room because I was considered an older mom at 38 years old. The baby was not getting enough oxygen, so I was turned on my side and given an oxygen mask.

Twelve hours later, he was born.

I came close to having a C-section, but the doctor used forceps and pulled him out. After that, everything became a blur of visitors, doctors, nurses, and excited phone calls.

I remember that I had a lovely roommate in that so-called geriatric room. She told me that while she was delivering her son, window washers were right outside cleaning the windows. Talk about feeling exposed to the world.

From the day my son was born, I have felt blessed. I never thought I could have another child, but life had other plans, and God blessed us with our son. Early in my pregnancy, I feared I might lose him because of a low hormone count. Thankfully, and with many prayers, that did not happen.

The years have flown by, and that sweet, loving little blond boy is now a father himself, with his own beautiful son.

I hope he knows how deeply he is loved.

And I hope he always knows that I will never forget the joy of becoming his mother.



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