1991- When my Brother Luke Was Born

 I have a lot of memories flooding my mind as I take the time to go back and try to write it all out. My younger sister Charmaine, who was born 4 years after me, and the one that I was jealous of, is someone I will get to. My heart towards her is tender and my eyes turn into a gush of water as if a dam busted holding back all of the emotion I feel for her and the love that I have when I say her name. So until I can gain my composure, I will skip down to 1991.

My mom was thrown out of her doctor's office when she fell pregnant again after being warned not to get pregnant. She had fought a cancerous tumor that had wrapped around her womb after my oldest brother, Marcus, was born in Northern Ireland. She then had an ectopic pregnancy between me and Charmaine. Her womanly parts were not equipped for making babies anymore, yet as I mentioned before, she is a Woman of God and she felt that it was the right thing to do. We were living in Las Vegas in 1991 and I was 6.5 years old when my brother Luke was born. His birth is one for the books and not to be overlooked as I remember it quite vividly. As if I'm there now watching my mom perspire with sweat. She had a midwife that showed up at our house. My mom was too much of a risk for any doctor to take on and so she didn't even go into the hospital. When the midwife showed up, she brought her ruckus kids. I remember her daughter because she grabbed my hula hoop from me and sat on it making into an egg shape where it now had sides that were white and pinched together. I was sad that she did that to my toy. I loved that thing. I didn't want anything to do with her and went to be with my mom in her bedroom. My dad, once again, was lollygagging off- who knows where... I don't remember where Aaron was or what he was doing, but Marcus was scared and kept his distance from my mom during her suffering. It was scary to see my mom sweat and hum in pain like she was doing. I was too young to understand that what she was doing could have taken her life and I jumped into her bed to be with her. The midwife would come and go too. She didn't come off too caring or concerned and would just leave my mom there humming, crying, and sweating out of pain. I remember my mom moving from the bed to the bathroom. Back and forth. I knew she was having a baby and I was excited. I grabbed a white hand towel and soaked it in cold water, folded it in half and placed it on her forehead. It didn't take long for the cold cloth to turn warm from her body temperature. I would run back and forth from her bedroom to the bathroom returning with a cold wet rag. My mom was definitely the first person I loved dearly. Our relationship is a uniquely beautiful one. As her birthing pains and contractions started to intensify where it was just, simply, too much, it was time. Luke was ready to come out and had enough of being curled up in our mother's womb. The midwife all of a sudden showed up again. "Oh, hi. How was your lunch break?" My dad awkwardly showed up too. Remember, he used to show up for the highlights. Marcus stood at the door of my mom's bedroom and my mom was now laying on the floor and not her bed. I know now that it was because she needed her back supported on something more firm than a mattress that would sink as she would bare down to push our Luke out. I was there. I remember being shocked that it's how a baby was born and Luke was bloody and slimy. Eeeehhh! What the hell is that? 

Howling came from our dog outside my mom's bedroom window when my brother Luke was born. An interesting howling too. A cry for something. Our dog at the time had more wild wolf in it than a domesticated dog. It's name was Akela. The perfect name for that stone cold  and mysterious dog with the most piercing blue eyes. I don't even know where we got it, but it was the last time I would see it. It just left. Ran away. Went somewhere other than our home and backyard. It was wild alright. Welcome to this beautiful world Luke! We are ecstatic that you have joined our family.