Happy Birthday

This is for my son. Today is his birthday. I hope it is just what you ordered, with maybe a nice surprise stuck in as well.

I always think of the first time I saw you on July 22, 1957. You were planned for 62 years ago before your sister's birth. Your father and I decided after we were married that we would both work at teaching school until he had earned his masters degree. We wanted to be settled and ready for our ideal family, two children. We thought it might take about five years and we were right about that. Beginning our first summer together we went to George Peabody college in Nashville, Tenn. where he had applied for admission in graduate school. We did this for three summers, each summer living in a different apartment. He worked very hard during the week while I just rested, kept house, read and tried to be quiet so he could make best use of his time.

One summer it rained EVERY day in July. That was the first summer. He had bought our first car from a teacher friend. It was a red convertible with a cloth top. It also had a cut in the top over on the right back side!! As I recall we had taped it in some fashion but we watched that water build up on the top and hoped the patch would hold !! The second place we lived was in a large house and our apartment was on the second floor. We had to share the large bathroom with some students from a mortuary school. There were always buckets of water with white uniforms soaking in them sitting in the bathroom and the water was not clear !! I will not describe that further.

Our last living quarters made no big impression on me so it must have been uneventful, except for two events. One, I had appendicitis with surgery just before we left and I lay in the back seat while he drove to Nashville. The second event was his graduation. I have pictures of him in his robe with the blue "hood" hanging from the back of the top. I do not remember the proper name for it but I am sure that there must be one. What I do remember is that I gave him an expensive book as a gift that day. It cost $50. It was the Abbington Bible Commentary. I wrote an inscription on the back of the cover and I still have it today. it says "To Raymond, on his graduation from Peabody. Rose, August 22, l952. I still use it sometimes, but mostly I use google if I need information.

Getting back to our first meeting, which was at St. Mary's hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, we had an appointment for your arrival. Our doctor practiced at St. Mary's as he was a Catholic with a sizable family of his own. The reason for the appointment was that your sister had come so quickly, yet on time, and my doctor did not want you to come too quickly. I was admitted and given "something", a drip in the vein to bring on labor. BUT, it did not work. I believe there was a limit on how much they could give, so there I was, I had been given the incentive and we just had to wait. Fortunately, you, my son, decided that you had waited long enough and so you just made your appearance, all 21 inches and 8# of you!! Your father was relieved and so was I. We had not made a firm committment for a name for you. Since the technology to determine that you would be a boy was not yet available. So, we had different ideas as to your name. I liked Stephen and your dad agree but came back to the hospital the next day and asked if we could use Bruce instead. With no strong defense in favor of Stephen, I agreed. So, Bruce Collier was the final decision and that is what went on your birth certificate. I took a picture of you early on and you were a long drink of water. But the first time I actually saw you it was feet first and they looked purplish. The doctor had placed you head down across my right leg and I first saw just the bottom of your feet !! My first look at your face at that early stage you looked like your uncle Bascom, your father's brother. That began to change in a matter of days, and you took on your own handsome face.

It was a lot of fun to see you develop and grow. You were always a very bright, optimistic, happy, adventurous little boy. You could be grumpy if awakened abruptly, so I would rub your back and gently awaken you in the mornings. It was easier for both of us !! You always had a plan B in mind in case your first plan did not pan out. Your father and I really enjoyed being parents and oh, how he loved his children. When you were still crawling around I would pick you up and stand at the window in the mornings so you could see your dad leave in his car. He would wave to you before he got in his car and you would wave back. Those were happy times and I hope you can always keep that in your mind when you think of him. You only had him for 13 years but I can tell you he was absolutely the best father you could have had. Also I KNOW he would be so proud of you today for the father that YOU have become. The pattern has been set and I feel sure that your son will carry it on. Am I proud of you? YOU BET I AM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SON