1964 - 1965

    Linda had to get back on track to graduate. It wasn't easy. Mom went to the principal had asked him to extend finals for Linda because she had been helping with the kids because mom was sick. He listened and Linda was given an extension. Now it was all up to her.
    Linda graduated, so did Barb, Judy and Cindy. They put their graduation hats on and took our pictures with them.
   I don't remember much about that fall or winter but again I do that summer. We got a dog, they named her Laddie, she was a German Shepherd Collie.
    We took her for a walk with us, when we walked our dolls in strollers. We lived on a busy street., Cedar Ave wasn't as busy as it is now but it was busy. We had to stay away from the curb and driveways, there were some next to houses so you could turn on Cedar into your driveway next to your house, but, you couldn't block the sidewalk you had to leave the sidewalk clear for people to walk.
     Some guy decided to park over the sidewalk when we were coming back from the corner so we had to go in the street just a little bit to get home. I had Carol and Tammy walk closest to the curb and I walked in the street, Laddie was behind us. We didn't see where the car came from but it was headed right towards us and Laddie jumped on me and knocked me onto the curb and took the hit.
     We thought she was dead and Carol ran home to get my mom while I sat with Tammy holding Laddie as we cried. I looked at her beautiful gray coat and she was breathing very slowly and blood was running out of her mouth, Laddie tried to move her legs, but she couldn't, she never tried to get up.
    Mom came running out and was scared and crying, she was worried that we may have been hit. I saw the look on her face as she saw us little girls holding Laddie, Mom thought Laddie was dying too.
    Timmy brought out a sheet and we helped mom and Timmy lie her on the sheet and then we picked her up and carried her back to the yard. A nice young man got out of his car to help and mom said to him, " If you want to help you better help the man who owns that car get the hell out of that house, because if I get to him before you do he'll wish it had been him that got hit instead of my dog!!." My mom was livid, her eyes told it all. Mom went in and called the police, the driver came back, he had panicked but couldn't keep going, " I'm so sorry," he told my mom, he had a tear stained face," I kept thinking I might have hit one of those little girls and I couldn't live with that! It's bad enough I hit a dog, but a little girl. All I heard was a little girl scream. over and over and over. Tell me they are all ok". My mom's anger turned to compassion. I will never forget how she held his hand. He told her that he was late and driving too fast and thought there was enough room and then all he heard was a loud thump.
    The man that owned the car now had come out of the house when he heard the sirens. Mom was on her feet so fast, she walked over to him and quietly said," you are one lucky man today, God must be on your side, if one of my kids had been hit you would be in that ambulance instead of the dog."
    Mom knew the driver of the ambulance they put the dog on the stretcher and took her to the pet hospital,  I sat on the porch, I watched as the owner of the car got a ticket for blocking the sidewalk and while the police told him that he was lucky that one of us girls hadn't been hit or he would be in jail for a vehicular misdemeanor.
    I had this huge heaviness in my heart, it was my fault, Laddie saved me and might die. I never felt anything hurt so much, what if it would have Tammy or Carol? I closed my eyes, covered them with my hands and just sat there. I would hate myself. Timmy came and sat by me," Not your fault Jelly Bean, it was just an accident." he tried to comfort me.
    I cried on his shoulder for hours. What if Laddie died? I heard dads car drive up I went to the car and looked in the window, she was laying in the backseat. Her leg was broken and they said that something had been bleeding inside I don't remember what it was, but they thought they fixed it.. If  Laddie was going to survive the next few days would tell us. Sadly her leg got infected.She wouldn't move she just laid there. They had to take her back and have her put to sleep. I remember my dad being angry about how much money he spent on her and she died anyway.
     Linda got a job as a key punch operator, someplace down town.She was saving her money to get her own place. Linda was at work and mom was getting us ready to go to Weds. Aquatenial Parade, dad worked downtown too. We were to meet up with dad and Linda so we could watch the parade as a family. There was a knock on the door. A strange looking man was there and asked for my mom.
     Mom was surprised. She just stood there looking at the man," Can I come in?", he asked,: Linda isn't here she's at work, and why are you here now after all these years? 17 years go by and you decide now that she's an adult to come and see her? I don't know if she'll talk to you or not. So your welcome to come with us Earl," Earl that name sounded familiar, oh yeah he was Linda's real dad.
    We all walked to Hertz rent a car down town to meet dad and Linda. Linda walked over to us and sat down she looked at the man, and then my dad came out and shook hands with Earl," Nice to meet you," dad said. Linda just sat quiet, " Linda want to go for a walk and talk for a little bit? I'm your dad I would like to get to know you ask some questions and you can ask me." Linda very bluntly stood u and looked him directly in the yes and said to him, " You are NOT my dad, Bill is. He was there for every ache and pain I had, he was there for me when the hospital receptionist called me a negro and when I needed help in school and when I graduated. He has always been there for everything, I haven't always liked my dad, but he has been my dad no matter what, even when he didn't want to be. Even when I was so horrible he could have turned his back on me. So I have nothing to say to you Earl except good-bye."
    Earl gave my mom 2 dollars and told her to buy us ice cream. Linda never seen him again. When she had her first baby I asked her if she ever wanted to call Earl and tell him about his grandson and she said," Why? my kids have 2 grandpa's Pete and dad and that's all". I never asked again, but I did talk about him with her once in awhile and she always said she didn't care.
     Well, the owners were going to sell the house again, so we had to look for a house to move to. This time they decided to buy a house. Mom wanted to move before school started in case we had to go to another school.
     They found a house in the Seward area, it was a very sought after neighborhood and still is.
      It was a good thing we were moving mom was pregnant again and this time she was really sick.
      The ladies from some church helped us clean out the house and move in and so did Judy, she even stayed to take care of us because Linda had to work and Judy wasn't working then.
      Lori was born on Feb.25, 1966. We had been moved in for a few months. Mom wasn't bouncing back, she was sick a lot. Linda would come over and help mom clean the house.
      That spring the weather men kept predicting terrible storms for the summer.