After the families have visited for the evening, tethered their well wishes like
Balloons to the backs of chairs, taken photos of the first hours of life, my mother
Checks in on the preemies, often healthy but occasionally too yellow, or pink, or blue.
Deflated and in need of oxygen, they are held together by some order,
Exhausted by the urgency of being saved. For every tiny
Fledgling that leaves the unit, there is always another in need of touch.
Gloved, my mother cared through a thin layer of separation while
Holding the head of a baby born smaller than a shadow.
I think she liked the all-nighters, especially in early
January, babies born just after the New Year. She liked doing the
Kind things that love cannot do: adjusting another woman's breast,
Lifting the pillow under her head so the baby slips just above the
Mother's ribs, offering advice or comfort before returning to the
NICU, the tectonic plates of mother and child drifting together then apart.
Often she delighted in the midnight coos, a love song for the
Phantom ache of babies she could never carry, those tiny loaves
Quick, unleavened, so eager to take touch like communion, while she loved what
Remained, leaving her impoverished soul open and gaping.
She shuffled through our house as if they were long, antiseptic corridors,
There but not there. Such is the life of one in service to others,
Under no illusions about the gift of grace. My mother, whose
Voice is the sound of love becoming, seldom wondered
What became of those raindrops, whose first days of life were
X-rayed, poked, prodded--their sentences commuted to time served.
Yet, they will not remember this time when they were barely more than
Zygotes, as it should be. As if they were never there.
Lifestyle
April 26, 2007
Night Work
- Lifestyle
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- Eagle Festival swooping into Newburyport tomorrow 11Throughout the free festival — which is scheduled for tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. — participants can enjoy a range of activities, all designed to help participants observe eagles in their natural habitat.
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Pan-American jazz comes to Rockport
ROCKPORT — A Grammy Award-winning musician will entertain a local audience with his blend of Pan-American jazz in a benefit event tonight that also highlights the growing revival of jazz on the North Shore.
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'The Addams Family': Quirky musical comedy comes to Boston
Where does one go as an actress after playing Cruella de Vil? If you are Sara Gettelfinger, straight to Morticia Addams.
You know, that Addams. Da-da-da. Snap. Snap. Da-da-da. Snap. Snap. Da-da-da. Da-da-da. Da-da-da. Snap. Snap. -
Short and snappy
John Bonner's film "The Impossible Journey" gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, "You can't get there from here."
The short movie, which will screen at the Winter Film Festival on Thursday, Feb. 16, tells the story of an 18-mile bicycle ride that Bonner took from his home in Marblehead to Boston. -
AN ARABIC MODE
Can music solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
That possibility is being considered by a class at Salem State, which will host the SHARQ Arabic Music Ensemble on Monday, Feb. 13, for a performance and master class that are both open to the public. -
North Shore Entertainment Calendar
Good cause and fundraisers
DANCING WITH THE STAFF. Thursday, Feb. 9, 7 p.m., Swampscott High School, 200 Essex St., Swampscott. Dancing With the Staff competition will benefit the Swampscott High School Dance Team. $5/advance, $7/at the door. Open to the public. To purchase tickets, contact Coach Danielle Lannon at daniellelannon@gmail.com, or Alexa Baldacci at alexabaldacci@gmail.com. -
Pet Connection: How to prevent a lost-pet crisis
Tonka, a beloved Jack Russell terrier and member of a Salem family, disappeared on Halloween while his owners were giving out treats and getting their kids into costumes for trick-or-treating.
The devastated parents called the veterinary practice, Animal Control Officer Donald Famico and the Salem police to see if any lost animals had been turned in. Very little sleep was achieved that night. Mom and dad scoured the neighborhood looking for Tonka and contacted everyone they knew to help them find him. They had no idea if Tonka had been lost or stolen. The next morning, their young children were so enraptured with their Halloween candy they did not notice Tonka was missing, and their wise mother got them off to school calmly without distressing them with the bad news. Then she went back about her search. - The Buzz Many wish people were more like dogs It seems some people are not dreaming of getting a puppy as a Valentine's Day gift, but rather wishing their human mates were more like a dog. And their dogs are helping them look for mates! According to an American Kennel Club survey:
- Don't fret over dog park snub: Don't fret over dog park snub Q: I'm trying not to take it personally, but my feelings are hurt. This morning when I showed up at the park where neighborhood dogs and their owners gather every day, there was one woman standing there with her dog, Daisy, a West Highland terrier. Her dog ran over to my dog, greeting us warmly. Daisy's owner was not so sunny. She responded to my bright "good morning" with a question: "Where is everybody?" She made me feel invisible. I felt like saying something nasty to her. Suddenly, my dog group feels like high school. Am I not in the popular crowd?
- Dear Abby: Savings bond gift matures into mother/daughter battle Dear Abby: I'm 30 years old and have a close relationship with my mother, but something is bothering me. When I was a little girl, my grandmother gave me a U.S. savings bond for my birthday. It has matured to its full value. My mother refuses to give it to me. She said that my grandmother intended it as a wedding gift.
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