My birthday story

On the anniversary of my birth, I had a pleasant conversation with my mother where I asked her about what was happening the day I was born.

I arrived the morning of Wednesday, January 13, 1960. My parents had four sons already, the last born three years and almost four months previously. The family was living in a public housing project in a small city in upstate New York at the time, where Dad managed a community center connected to the complex.

During Christmas of 1959, Mom had the responsibility of shopping for presents while expecting a gift of her own. She remembered how that tired her out. A short woman, pregnancy made her look plump, and my third oldest brother who was four, thought it quite amusing to see her running all over town in her condition.

She told me she has no recollection of any problems during the pregnancy. The morning of my birth, my two oldest brothers had already gone to school when Mom said she felt me kicking. There was no rushing to the hospital like in the movies. Mom and Dad just made a leisurely drive to the Catholic hospital.

Mom said I was a natural birth and although she didn’t recall how much I weighed, guessed it was around 5-6 pounds. A cute little round baby, with lots of nice, black curly hair. She said my brother’s teachers broke the news to them in school that they had a new younger sibling.

There were now two parents, four small kids and an infant living in a three bedroom apartment. It would stay that way until we moved into a house two years later, just before my younger brother was born. Mom said I was a good sleeper and eater, with a healthy appetite, two attributes I maintain to this day. She didn’t recall when I started trying to walk, but said I started talking early and often. After a few years, I got good at saying, “No” she said, another skill I cultivated over the years.

Were you wondering about the significance of a football player on the main page for this link? Well, the number should be a giveaway, but it's more than that. The player is the late Ernie Davis, who in 1961 became the first African American to win college football's prestigious Heisman Trophy. He did it while attending Syracuse University, my alma mater.

Ok, I needed a graphic and I was reaching. Sue me.

Posted by bernie at January 13, 2004 11:30 PM