Published: March 25, 2008 06:03 pm      

RANDOM THOUGHTS: Janie's story

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. That was my reaction when I came to Janie’s name in this month’s birthday book. That name brought years of memories to mind.

As World War II came to an end, our first baby was about to be born. Shortly after our son’s arrival my husband was discharged and we returned to the college town where he continued his education. Two years later he graduated and our second son had arrived.

Husband was employed by a utility company and we bought a brand new house in that town. Shortly after we moved in a family bought the new home across the street. They had two daughters the same age as our boys. By the next year we had a third son and they welcomed a third daughter. Our families were close and enjoyed many good times together. Several years later we moved to another town when husband was promoted to another position. But our friendship was strong and we continued to get together at least once a year.

Each time we met our tots were growing into young men and women. They were all in their late teens the year we received a phone call from the girls’ parents. They were on the road very near our home and we insisted they stop for a visit.

We learned where they had been. Their second daughter Janie was in a home for unwed mothers. It was only about twenty miles south of our town. The man responsible for the pregnancy was the married youth pastor of their church.

For the next four months we became Janie’s substitute family. I picked her up each weekend to spend Saturday and Sunday with us. She told the staff at the home I was her aunt and when she went into labor I was called.

I left for the hospital in Cincinnati immediately and when I arrived the staff was working to stabilize her blood pressure. The doctor finally gave me the word that I could call her parents. They arrived in time for the delivery and I returned home. They too left the next day and I visited Janie every day after that.

All the plans for adoption had been made in advance but I was unprepared for the scene I found on her last day in the hospital. It was her birthday and I brought a small bouquet but the birthday girl was near hysterics. A nurse had brought the baby girl, swathed in blankets, and stood at the foot of the bed for a few minutes before leaving. That act was enough to break the dammed-up emotions.

Several years later our family attended Janie’s wedding and over the years two daughters were adopted before the couple was blessed with the birth of a third daughter. In all those years we corresponded and she always received a birthday card from me.

About 25 years passed when Janie’s mother told me the adoption agency had contacted them. The baby from long ago was looking for her birth mother but Janie refused. I thought about that development for a long time before I acted.

I wrote Janie a long letter pleading the daughter’s case. The letter ended with the words that if I had overstepped the line I would understand if she banished me from her life. That is what happened and I never heard from her again. But her name remains in my birthday book and all those memories return on her day.

Yes, I lost but so did a young woman searching for her beginning.