by Shelley Bennett
As I write this (on April 7th), I’m thinking of where I was on this day forty years ago. I remember my dad waking me up and telling me he was taking my mom to the hospital, then later coming home and telling me she had to go to Reno.
It was time for our baby to be born! But it was a little scary at first.
It was Easter and since my mom had been diagnosed with pre-eclampsia, there were no plans. My dad asked if I could go to Becky’s house. I don’t know why, but I started to walk there. When I got to the hilly part of Parkdale, I regretted my choice.
The other Bennetts (Becky, her mom Beth, sister Donna, and brother Dwight) took good care of me until my dad called with the news that Alison Kate was born. She was seven weeks early, only 3 lbs and 15 oz, but doing good so far.
My grandparents drove over from the lake and took my brother and I to welcome our little sister. We had to scrub and put gowns on and I was nervous. I didn’t like hospitals. They had a certain “smell.” But the NICU was warm and cozy, lit up with monitors, and had a basinet with our baby inside.
I was instantly smitten. I had always wanted a sister and now we outnumbered Casey.
In the weeks that followed, Alison met all of her milestones. She could breathe without oxygen, eat on her own, started to gain weight, and do all the things that preemies have to do in order to go home.
I was 15-years old and I thought that the world revolved around me. But having Alison in our lives taught me that it didn’t and it made me a better, more caring, less self-absorbed teenager.
She has become more like a friend than a sister and I can always count on her, no matter what I ask. Through the years, she has been a chauffeur to Jacob and Landon, driving them from daycare to school and back. They both remember thinking she had a cool car and were excited when it was Aunt’s turn to pick them up.
Alison has been the official arts and crafts teacher since before Jacob was born. She is always game to get dirty, especially if there is a creative side to it. Every birthday party my children have hosted, were made better with decorations and games from Aunt.
From a life-sized Angry Birds game to a barn made out of a refrigerator box, she has done it all. Sofia remembers when Aunt taught all of her friends how to paint owls at her birthday party.
When they got older, every Homecoming Float and Prom were made better with Aunt’s help. She has the patience of a saint and the belief that anyone can be an artist. I’ve watched her teach teens how to make a piece of cardboard look like a weathered plank of wood.
She’s also given them confidence, helping with costumes, make up, and keeping an eye on their skit rehearsals. I remember a couple of boys from the Class of 2024 who were so psyched because she made them cool masks (T-Rex and Zurg) for their Toy Story float.
Alison is also an animal rescuer. Mostly cats and birds, she has nursed them back to health, fed them throughout the night, and either kept them to be part of the family or let them back into the wild. She loves her fur babies and treats them well. Her cranky cat Bella is kept happy with a steady diet of shrimp and cantaloupe.
I am so thankful that Alison was born. She brought back the magic to our family, the sense of wonder that you have when children are around. She made our lives better and I honestly don’t know what we do without her.
Please join me in wishing my sister Alison a very Happy Birthday! And if you know her, share a memory or something about her that makes her special.
Remember when news was ‘newsy’? When you read about weddings, family events and engagement announcements in the newspaper? If you have something that might be newsworthy, please submit it to [email protected] and I’ll do my best to include it here in “The Good Stuff.”
