It is my birthday Monday, and I always think of my mom when my birthday comes around. Why? Giving birth is not an easy thing to do. I have witnessed my wife giving birth to our children. Pushing another human being out of your body is not a walk in the park. I admire women a lot for that reason. My mother and my grandmother always had to describe to me in great detail the day I was born. The difficulty my mom had with her pregnancy with me and the delivery that almost took her life. Every birthday my grandmother, Dorothy would repeat the same story to me year after year. She wanted me to understand what my mom went through to have me.

So, since my mom and grandmother are no longer with us, I will share that story. My mom and dad got married January 29th 1951 in Waseca Minnesota. A major blizzard hit the day of the wedding, so not very many people attended the ceremony in the morning. The couple was happily married in a blizzard. My dad was in the Marines and was deployed to Korea after they were married. After the Korean War was over, they settled in Mankato.

My mom comes from a large family, her mother Dorothy had 14 brothers and sisters. Mom always wanted to be a mother, she said that was her dream, but there was a problem. She had diabetes. Mom got diabetes as a teenager. In the 1950’s diabetes and pregnancy was not a good combination. Doctors had told my mom that with her diabetes along with a pregnancy, that it could put her life at risk. Mom and dad wanted a family very much so they decided to start a family, knowing the risk. Then another problem, she could not get pregnant. For six years they tried to start a family. It was very frustrating for both of them. Mom had told me that it was a very difficult time in her life. Her cousins and friends were all having babies and she couldn’t. Then in 1957, mom said God blessed them with their first child. Me!

She spent many days in the hospital before I was born. Grandma told me it was a very difficult pregnancy. Before September 24th, the day I was born, mom spent 30 days in St. Joseph hospital in Mankato.  Grandma and mom seemed to enjoy telling me about the day I was born. I will spare you all the details of the delivery. Let’s just say grandma and mom loved to share in great detail with me about the delivery. Short story is her blood pressure dropped really low and the doctors were close to losing her. When I was born, and mom found out I was a healthy boy and she was going to be okay, it was the best day of her life. The joy she said she felt at that moment was overwhelming.

Mom went on to have four more children. Mom always was very thankful and proud of her family. After witnessing my wife be pregnant and deliver babies, I started giving my mom a red rose on my birthday. I would give her a hug and thank her for what she went through to give me life. I did that every year. I wanted to celebrate her more than me on September 24th. Love you mom!