If we were having coffee I’d be lamenting the fact that I am once again missing my mother’s birthday. I live across the country from my mom, who turns 94 today. I’d raise my mug in toast and say “Happy Birthday, Mom!”
The photo is my favorite picture of my mom, High School graduation photo. FYI, that’s pre-war … and I’m sure she was all piss and vinegar as they say. She got married right after the war and I came along third in line to the throne with two following.
There’s a little-known secret about my early years … my parents were remarkably cyclic … four of my five siblings were born five years apart. Only my older sister was out of sequence. She’s four years older than me.
What this means is that when I was a toddler/young hellion, and my older brother and sister started school. me and my mom were home all day … just her and me. She was the typical 50’s housewife then … stay at home. When she was a fledgling mother she had two infant/toddlers at the same time. By the time I emerged from that cycle, for 2-3 year until my younger sister came along, it was just her and me. By the time that was over, she had started working again. Both younger sisters knew the joys of daycare but me, I never experienced that. Oh, she had periods of at-home time with them, and of course with my older siblings, but I had her all to myself during those few great years. I’m not gloating, I just feel fortunate. I’ve done a lot in this life, but those are some of my fondest memories.
So, Happy Birthday, mom!
Thomas Fenske is a writer living in North Carolina, far from his mother in Houston. His second novel, A Curse That Bites Deep, was just published this month.
Scratching the Surface 