Another Day on the Farm:27th Excerpt from “Defying the Odds”
(Available from http://www.publishamerica.com)
Betty Toughs it Out...
Right from the start Betty had a very tough life as a farmer's wife. Not only did she have the usual work of looking after five kids and taking care of the household chores, she now had the additional problems of carrying water from the pump house and heating it, both for bathing and laundry, on the kitchen wood stove. Everyone helped in any way they could but Betty bore the bulk of the load. From the time she woke in the morning until bedtime, she was constantly cooking, baking, cleaning, washing clothes and hanging them out to dry, as well as looking after her babies. There were no Pampers for diapers…she made them herself and washed them by hand.
The stress of moving, plus the hard work she was doing, were silently taking their toll. A couple months after moving in, Betty said she wasn’t feeling very well and was worried because there hadn’t been any movement from the baby she was carrying. I took her to the hospital in Athabasca right away. The doctor induced labour to deliver the dead baby. Although it may have been a blessing in disguise, because Betty didn’t need the additional work of taking care of another baby, but still she was very sad because she loved babies.
To be continued next time…
I would like very much to hear from you! You may send your comments by clicking either the Comments or the Letter icon below. Thank you…Have a warm day…
Floyd
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