What is Something Crazy That Has Happened to You?

 I am having some trouble answering this question because I don’t seem to be a very crazy person and not much happens to me that could be described as crazy. Recently, however, I was relating a “childbirth” story and when the person I was talking to responded with, “That is crazy,” I knew that I would write a story about the “crazy” things that happened when my first son was born.

Fifty years ago, I was pregnant with our first child. Since we did not know the gender before birth in those days, we did not know that I would be having a baby boy. My due date was June 11, 1971. I was a school librarian at a Middle School at that time and June 11th just happened to be the last day of school that year for teachers. My husband was a student at Trinity Divinity School at that time and commuted each day to classes 50 miles from Racine, WI where we lived. We lived very close to Mitchell Jr. High where I worked so I could very easily walk back and forth to my job.

After I learned I was pregnant during the fall semester of 1970, I learned from my Principal that teachers who became pregnant during the school year were required to resign following the end of the semester in which they learned of their pregnancy. This was very difficult news for John and me. I was earning our income while he was a student. If my job ended, our income ended and that would make it difficult for him to complete his Ministerial program to become a Pastor. Fortunately for us, my Principal knew our situation and wanted me to be able to continue in my position until the year ended or the baby arrived so that John could continue his seminary education. My principal took my situation to the Superintendent of Schools and advocated for a change in the policy in my case. That request was granted and I continued my job as the school librarian as I continued to carry our first child.

Since babies can arrive early, I wanted to make sure I saved my “sick” days until the end of the school year in the event our baby would arrive early. I had very good health that year and did not use any sick days during that year.

Spring Banquets For Teens...

This story is about an event I attended annually as a young teen through my college years known as the Spring Banquet.  In my teenage era, Christian youth were strongly urged not to attend dances so most teens did not go to the prom during their high school years.  But there was an event held for teens that took the place of the prom and allowed for very nice suits and dresses to be worn.  This event was called the Spring Banquet and included a special program following a lovely meal.  The program would usually include a speaker, special musicians and sometimes a Christian teen movie but no dancing.  It was a very special event which I looked forward to each spring.

While I was in high school and before my brother graduated from high school, the Groves girls would attend the Spring Banquet with our brother.  The first photo below is of my brother and me which was taken in the front yard of our farm home. The photo was developed in June 1958.   I would have been in seventh grade that spring and my brother would have been a sophomore in high school.