Monday, May 13, 2019

HAPPY DAY AFTER MOTHER'S DAY !!!!

Spent a very peaceful and non-eventful Mum's Day.

It wasn't until this morning watching TV that one of the morning ladies was enthusing about the newest Royal Baby, Archie. Mum and Dad posted a picture of little toeses.  (Moses supposes his toees are roses but Moses supposes erroneously... never mind).

I wondered if the parents received a print of the Royal little feet.  My mother had an entire collection of Berglund foot prints that were prepared for each baby as they came along.  Occasionally they would get brought out for general perusal and admiration. Ellen's were the tiniest footies. 

I have worked in other facilities where they did not make any kind of certificate other than a little certificate saying the so and so was born on such and such a date. etc.  Very unmemorable.

One day I was working away deep in the bowels of WKMH when a woman came into the department.  She wanted to turn in the foot print certificate of her daughter.  She didn't want to destroy the thing but she was going through a nasty divorce and she was determined to eliminate any references to the man.  I was dumb founded and took the document and told her I would file it in the baby's chart.  I was a little sad that this was a lost little memento of her baby's first day of life.  

I worked at WKMH for about nine years.  I was confident that those records were sacred and would stay forever.  Unfortunately, a few years after I left, the hospital ran out of room for record storage.  

As I understand it the then maintenance manager Mr. G. burned everything just to make room based on the fact that the records were so old.  That makes me a little sad as well.  So that Mom can never retrieve that memory for her or her daughter. (sniff)

Paper is so ephemeral, some bits of paper that has no bearing what so ever hangs around like death and taxes. Speaking of which I'm pretty sure I can safely throw out my old tax returns, I have about 20 years worth sitting stacked neatly on top of my roll top. I also have old boxes of blank paper checks from accounts that NO LONGER EXIST.  Um, could burn 'em I suppose. Do need to shred at some point.

The point I'm try to make is that the elusive bits that may belatedly come to mean something to you are often irreplaceable.  God Bless the Moms who keep track of our Birth certificates, our immunization records, our naughtiest report cards etc.  

Happy Mother's Day. A day late. 

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