Thursday, August 12, 2010

The Appendectomy

This blog post by my friend Linda got my creative juices flowing. 

The girl in the story got pregnant, but her parents told everyone that she had a "tumor".  And instead of fessing up once the girl had her baby, the parents made up an elaborate lie about how a baby just mysteriously showed up on their doorstep with a note pinned to his clothes.

Me?  I wasn't a tumor.  I was an appendix.  At least that was what my grandparents told some of the older relatives in the family.  They said that my mother had had to have emergency surgery when in actuality, she'd given birth to me...their first grandchild.  I was the first niece born in the family...the first one to give birth to the family's grandniece and nephew.  But because of how my life's puzzle was put together, I had to read my uncle's jubilant Facebook comment when my cousin had her daughter. 

"Today, we welcome baby Maggie to the world.  And with her birth, I become a great uncle!"

I know it's got to be just as strange for them to turn their thoughts around and see that I'm actually "here"..but it doesn't make it hurt any less.

I am the appendix ripped out of my mother's stomach and tossed away in a sterile bowl.

Adoption is an emergency appendectomy

8 comments:

  1. Take your point, perhaps this is 'the culture of adoption' Chuck Johnson is talking about changing!
    Big hug x

    ReplyDelete
  2. An appendix. Wow. Almost as goofy as a tumor.

    Im sorry you had to read that from your cousin. I know how it feels...we are an afterthought. Like an expendable "appendage" that needs to be removed.

    ReplyDelete
  3. :( I am sorry you were spoken of like that. How cruel, even if they didn't intend it to be cruel (and I am sure they didn't, they just didn't think). Just goes to show how little people think of the child being a person. Didn't they ever think how that might affect you later on?

    (((((Christina))))

    Luv u,
    Myst xxx

    ReplyDelete
  4. *sigh*

    When will humanity get it?

    I am so sorry you have experienced this. It's just wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  5. If it makes you feel any better, my nmom's family told everyone that I had died at birth. How awkward would it be now for me to show up at the family reunions?!

    ReplyDelete
  6. How sad that you and your Mother were marginalized to make everything appear acceptable to society. I am sorry that you and she have lived through this pain. (((((Christina))))))

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm sorry for yet another insult on your Person.

    ReplyDelete

Share your words of wisdom with the rest of the class. :)