1963 was one of those years when everything in my world changed. I left my full time career as a nurse because I was pregnant. Hospital policy did not allow nurses to work after the second trimester. I became a mother. My husband accepted a job at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. We packed all our worldly belongings into a moving van and sent them off to Maryland. We moved out of our cute little house in Santa Monica and moved back to Whittier where we lived with my parents for the last month of the year. I was so in awe my beautiful newborn daughter that all the big changes going on in my life faded into the background.
Christmas morning I dressed my baby in a cute little red Santa suit. My day revolved around her. She seemed to delight in the Christmas lights. My family all delighted in her. The importance of our impending move across the country had not really sunk in with me. I didn't realize that this would be the last time I would celebrate Christmas with my parents, my brothers and my nieces. I did not realize that my role in life would largely change from being a daughter to being a mother. Two weeks later we left California and flew to Maryland.
The next Christmas I was large with child and my doctor advised against traveling across the country for the holidays. Santa found us in Maryland. Our house filled with children and we always stayed home for Christmas. I missed my California family. Every year when we put up our tree I would call home and exclaim, “ It's the pettiest tree we've ever had!” just as my mom had said every year. Every year on Christmas Eve we would open the big packages that had come from our families and celebrate California Christmas. I would have a few pangs of loneliness. Christmas morning we awoke to the happy squeals of our children as they discovered the pile of goodies brought by Santa. Our children all have wonderful memories of Christmas.
Was there a year in your life when everything changed and you just didn't realize it at the time?
3 comments:
I have been fortunate to be with my family every Christmas. Things did change though. Since my daughter got married and moved out she "visits" on Christmas. It was strange last year.
Sue, I am loving these trips down memory lane - memories happy and bittersweet.
I can certainly relate to being far from family. Except for three short years, we haven't lived near our parents as adults.
When E was born the only visitor I had in the hospital was my husband. The first few months were hard.
Well, I'm hoping this year will be that kind of year--in a good way--for Iwanski and me. :) You never know...hopefully we will be parents at some point in the next year or two. :)
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