i came into this life -
MY BIRTH AND FIRST YEAR
august 11, 1943 - august 11, 1944
august 11, 1943 - august 11, 1944
as a true LEO, it was only fitting that i came into this world with all the drama befitting one of such stature - and so, in utero it seems that i was playing hulahoops with my umbilical cord which i wound round and round my little short neck - which meant a theatrical appearance at birth - according to my father, who loved to tell this tale, i was the color of the penny minted in 1943
- because of the war effort, this was the only year that copper was not used in the penny composition, thereby resulting in a zinc-coated steel-colored penny -
and, also according to this teller of tales, the doctors indicated they would not wager the copperless penny that i would survive the feat of my strangulating birth - so i was immediately immersed into tubs of alternating hot and cold water in an attempt to resuscitate/shock my little lungs and heart - well, the end result is obvious - here i am - none the worse for wear and tear -
in addition to the black penny birth story is the story told by my mother - and written in my babybook - of somewhere in the hospital at the time of my birth, a choral group was singing “when the roll is called up yonder” - and then, there is the fact that i was born on a wednesday - wednesday, the day whose children are allegedly full of woe - having been born on the middle day of the week, i was also the middle child of three children -
in addition to the black penny birth story is the story told by my mother - and written in my babybook - of somewhere in the hospital at the time of my birth, a choral group was singing “when the roll is called up yonder” - and then, there is the fact that i was born on a wednesday - wednesday, the day whose children are allegedly full of woe - having been born on the middle day of the week, i was also the middle child of three children -
be all that as it may, this is the story of my physical entry into this world -
my birth is announced with all the fanfare of the day...
- my first name - jenean - is from the world war I song "jeannine i dream of lilac time" a song which my mother apparently loved [see lyrics in sidebar] - my middle name - corette - is after my maternal grandmother, cora agnes rowan perry
[photos September 5, 1943]
parents holding me on august 28, 1943:
october 11, 1943:
======================
upon my birth, my mother thought i should have my very own manual blog so she began the written blog of "life begins":
and these were the first posts all about ME:
and from as far away as trinidad family congratulations on my birth arrive:
following my birth in the midst of world war II it was necessary for me, an infant, to be issued a war ration book by the federal government aka BIG BROTHER - and, accordingly, they took away my name and issued me a number 247990DX:
sedro-woolley is a beautiful magical part of the country -
seattle is nearby - a beautiful drive - and from the air just as beautiful:
for more beauty, just follow the seattle floating bridge to the magestic mount ranier:
- while i have no conscious memories of my life in washington, all my life i have felt such an affinity for the mountains - i can smell the trees and hear the bubbling mountain streams still - a few months before my first birthday, my parents took us into canada - but i've no photos of that journey -
* * * * *
awaiting my arrival home was my three year old big sister, jerelyn charlene [born october 29, 1940] - until my birth, she had been the "only child" of our parents - the apple of our father's eye [he called her "jeri" because he'd wanted a boy or so it was said] - so my showing up was a challenge but one that she seemed to enjoy at least, at times, and/or as these photos seem to indicate [end of august to mid september 1943]:
the next few months were filled with lots of photographs of me, all befitting my dramatic role in the family -
all of my little wardrobe was handmade [including blankets, booties, bonnets, coats, gowns, and dresses] either by my mother or by my paternal aunt mae nash -
my big sister had a matching ensemble, handmade, as well, and we were dressed in these for our studio portrait here -
as i seem to be saying in this photo made when i was 10 months old, i was never one for the prissy little organza frocks that i was destined to wear and would much have preferred the barest necessities for modesty's sake only:
and then comes my number one birthday celebrating the first twelve months for me -
HAPPY
HAPPY
FIRST
BIRTHDAY
TO
ME
