First Born Worth Keeping

I have not been able to identify the woman who made this quotable statement.  "I think children are like pancakes: You sort of ruin the first one, and you get better at it the second time around."  Today is the anniversary of my first child's birth.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  I was 22 years old with a husband in college who was also working three jobs. We had no health insurance.  It was a "pay as you go" pregnancy and birth. (try finding a doctor who would do that today.)  I won't expound on the joy of holding your very own child for the very first time.  There have been volumes written - and many of you have your own memories of that.

I was thinking about the pancake quote and how the world would be different if people took it seriously.

First of all, you wouldn't be subjected to this blog, as I would have been discarded.  Then I thought about all the people in my life who would be absent.

• My Uncle Bill - one of the kindest, gentlest men.  He built me a toy box, a real life size playhouse and the corner cabinet for my mother that my first born now has in her dining room.
• My cousin Peter - a friend and neighbor most of our young lives.  He grew up to look like Paul Newman and he and his bride have given the world three upstanding and productive sons.
• My best friend Diane.  What a void without these many years of sharing our lives experiences.
• My niece Amy and nephew  Bill, Jr.  What a loving daughter and sister, successful business person, loving son and gifted teacher the world would have missed.
• All my "first" grandchildren:  Andrew, Carolyn, Carrie, Erica, Jack, and Ryan.  No explanation needed here.
• My sister-in-law,  Joe's sister, Mary.  She was one of my first contacts with the Crawford family. I  would have missed her sharp humor and her kindness toward me. She was also a fellow smoker - bonding over an ashtray in the days when anti- smoking was at a peak.



Picture this without the first borns


• My first born.  I can't picture life without her. The people she helps everyday must feel that way too. She has also given the world three smart, active new citizens who will make their marks on the next generation.  Happy Birthday, Colleen.  Enjoy the day.

I'm sure you all have some "first borns" in your lives that you would miss. 

Here's an interesting article   http://www.essortment.com/effects-birth-order-64905.html.

As for famous people. Most of our presidents, Nobel prize winners and the likes of Walter Cronkite  and Oprah Winfrey are first born.  But so are Saddam Hussein and Joseph Stalin.  I guess it cuts both ways.  What a very different world this would be indeed.