Once a year my mother and I would make our trek to my orthopedic "expert," Dr. Allard. The pokes, the prods, the pulls, the pushes, the battery of x-rays were consistently followed by the same comment: "We have to wait until she gets a little older before anything can be done." My mother didn't seem disappointed this time, but I didn't ask any questions. Remember, my illness was NEVER discussed. It was what it was.
Shortly after that doctor's visit, my mother decided I should learn to swim. She signed me up for lessons at the YMCA. I loved water and was looking forward to this; besides that, it would be the only time I could actually go without braces. (I had to wear them even at night, UGH!) I thought learning to swim would be easy...and it would have been...if it weren't for that flutter kick. I wasn't coordinated and had very little strength in my legs. It took months for me to pass from Group 1 to Group 2, but I DID it! My mother watched me become stronger and stronger as I swam three days a week for years. I never realized at the time what a financial burden these lessons must have been for my parents.
As the new school year neared, I wasn't exactly thrilled about starting the second grade, but hoped that my classmates would be the same ones as in first grade. They weren't, which meant I had to start all over with making new friends. It was so hard to do. I just hated it!
But my mother had a plan. She suggested that I become a "Brownie" in the Girl Scout Association. I had no idea what a "Brownie" was or did, but I loved the uniform. It made me look just like the other girls in my school. Now I felt as though I belonged. I liked the field trips our troop took, as well as the overnight campouts down by the Yellowstone River. I learned a great deal and, of course, wanted to share it with my parents. They beamed with pride as I built a stove from a cardboard box lined with tinfoil and cooked them S'mores.
The worst thing about being a "Brownie" was selling all those cookies! From door to door I lugged those boxes of goodies. I did learn, though, that if the buyer happened to see my braces, they bought alot of cookies, probably more than they normally would have. Maybe, just maybe, there was a good side to this life of mine.
As for my mother and her "mission," she had only just begun!
To be continued...
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