Baby’s Birth Adds to Count of Blessings

When the telephone rang, I was arranging flowers, my mother was wrapping silverware and my dad was marinating the meat for the evening’s festivities.
I left what I was doing and went to pick up the receiver. At first I didn’t recognize the voice, but when I did, I was excited.
“Did you have the baby?” I hurriedly asked my sister, Sheila. When she answered that she did, I screeched and my mother came running and Dad stopped what he was doing at the stove.
“Sheila had the baby,” I told my parents.
“Boy or girl? And when?” I asked.
“A boy born about an hour ago?” I repeated into the phone.
“How is he? How are you? How’s Ken (my sister’s husband)?”
“Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful,” my sister answered to all three questions. “We are calling him William Ned.”
It was time to rejoice – as it always was when a new and healthy life makes its debut into our world. But our family had even more reason to be excited, pleased and thankful with the new son, grandson, nephew and cousin.
Sheila and Ken lost a baby 14 months ago. The baby was an almost full-term stillborn girl. We were heartbroken when it happened. They named her Sheila Maureen.
My family is used to good things happening; so when the baby died it seemed lik one of our expected blessings was denied.
It wasn’t supposed to be like that. It was sand and hard to accept. But life continues and so did Sheila, Ken and Max, their 2-year-old son.
At the summer get-together at the lake, Ken won the Bert Johnson Invitational, the family’s 8-mile run to Lake Geneva City. And at a talent show organized by the children, Sheila, Ken and Max performed in a goofy skit as the king, queen and price of Hungie Bungie.
Then the good news came. A new baby was expected in early April.
The happy anticipation began and continued as Sheila’s due date approached and passed.
Also on the agenda was the celebration party from my book , to which I had invited my parents. Sheila and my parents live in the Chicago area. Mom and Dad wanted to come but also wanted to be on hand to help with Max in case Sheila gave birth.
Another sister, Bonnie, interceded and went to stay with my sister and Ken. I had my party, Sheila had the baby the same day, and the happiness filled the air.
That is the way life is supposed to be.
The joy little William Ned’s birth has given our family would be no less if we had not lost his sister last year. But because we did , our joy is so much more abundant.
Both occasions have reminded us of the fragility of the gifts we continually receive. Life, love, family and friendship are the treasures of the world.
We never will forget Sheila Maureen and the missed opportunity to know her. Her memory has blessed all the Barretts with renewed joy and faith as we welcome her brother.
And on the Cavanaugh side of the family, the blessing are overflowing. We celebrated the November 5 birth of Claire Irene Boyer, the March 30 birth of Bertilla Bernadette Cavanaugh and await the impending June birth of Baby Amdor.
The flowers of spring are blooming; and the garden is beautiful.
April 24, 1989