Once upon a time in a little country village there were three brothers (ages 7, 5, and 2).
If you were to ask any of them where babies came from, they would have told you that, when a family decided that they wanted another baby to be delivered, they would call the doctor, and he would come to the house carrying a bag, and the baby would be inside of that bag.
The oldest brother had seen this happen twice, so he'd shared it with his two younger brothers.
Although he had been sent outdoors to play when the doctor arrived, he knew that this was what had happened, because, both times, his mom and dad had called the doctor to say that it was time to deliver the baby; the doctor came to the house carrying a bag; and, when he was allowed to come inside again, there was always a brand new baby in the house.
He had been quite satisfied with both brothers, so he was sure that he would also like the latest baby who would be arriving in the doctor's bag this time around--and, no matter what, there was going to be a new baby in the family, so he wasn't too concerned one way or the other.
However, the two younger brothers were--and they were on opposite sides of the fence when it came to how welcome this new baby would be.
The five year old brother was happy to have a new playmate coming to stay in their house, but the two year old brother had reservations. After all, he was supposed to be the baby of the family, and he wasn't ready to turn over that position to another baby without a fight.
There was only one thing for this little tot to do: lock the door so that the doctor wouldn't be able to get in and deliver that intrusion into his life. So he did.
When his older brother saw what he'd done, he hurried to unlock the door again, because he really wanted to have another playmate.
The youngest went over and locked it again.
The older brother unlocked it.
The baby brother relocked it.
The older brother unlocked it.
And on and on and on.
The oldest one just watched the two of them and shook his head in amazement. He knew that, no matter what anybody thought, that doctor was going to get into the house in some way--even if he had to come down the chimney like Santa Claus--and drop off that baby.
Before long, the three brothers were sent outside to play.
When they came back in, they were told that they had a brand new baby sister.
The seven year old had no problem with that.
The five year old not only had no problem with that, but he was so excited that he could hardly contain himself.
The two year old still wasn't too keen on the idea that he was no longer the baby of the family, and he didn't know why everybody was making such a fuss over this new arrival. He guessed that having another baby in the house was okay just so long as there was always room for him, too.
One thing he noticed was that she was making this little squeaky whimpering sound, so he observed that she sounded like a rabbit.
He and his baby sister would soon become fast friends who, in the years to come, loved to go outdoors and chase butterflies together.
Besides those three brothers and their baby sister, the children in the family included a boy who was born far too early to survive (who would have been nine had he been born when he was supposed to have been), and another brother and sister who would arrive a few years later.
Sometime tomorrow (April 6), this story will have taken place exactly 91 years ago, because the baby rumored to have been in the doctor's bag just happens to be my mom, Lillian Ainsley (Jobe) Phillips, who will be celebrating another birthday.
The three brothers in the story grew up to be my uncles:
George Willard Jobe (Uncle George) June 8, 1914-December 6, 1998
Owner/Operator of Cloverdale Garage in Cloverdale, IN
William Henry MacDonald Jobe (Uncle Donald) September 18, 1916-February 19, 1941
Did some barbering and worked at Guide Lamp (Division of GM) in Anderson, IN until Bright's Disease made him no longer able to keep working there.
Finley Ralph Jobe (Uncle Finley) July 16, 1919-May 7, 1993
Served in Navy and became a Navy barber in time. Eventually was a barber at Nameless Barber Shop in San Francisco, CA.
I'll be sharing more about my family in future columns, but, for now, I'll sign off. It will soon be April 6. I'll let you know what all takes place when I write here again next Friday...
If you were to ask any of them where babies came from, they would have told you that, when a family decided that they wanted another baby to be delivered, they would call the doctor, and he would come to the house carrying a bag, and the baby would be inside of that bag.
The oldest brother had seen this happen twice, so he'd shared it with his two younger brothers.
Although he had been sent outdoors to play when the doctor arrived, he knew that this was what had happened, because, both times, his mom and dad had called the doctor to say that it was time to deliver the baby; the doctor came to the house carrying a bag; and, when he was allowed to come inside again, there was always a brand new baby in the house.
He had been quite satisfied with both brothers, so he was sure that he would also like the latest baby who would be arriving in the doctor's bag this time around--and, no matter what, there was going to be a new baby in the family, so he wasn't too concerned one way or the other.
However, the two younger brothers were--and they were on opposite sides of the fence when it came to how welcome this new baby would be.
The five year old brother was happy to have a new playmate coming to stay in their house, but the two year old brother had reservations. After all, he was supposed to be the baby of the family, and he wasn't ready to turn over that position to another baby without a fight.
There was only one thing for this little tot to do: lock the door so that the doctor wouldn't be able to get in and deliver that intrusion into his life. So he did.
When his older brother saw what he'd done, he hurried to unlock the door again, because he really wanted to have another playmate.
The youngest went over and locked it again.
The older brother unlocked it.
The baby brother relocked it.
The older brother unlocked it.
And on and on and on.
The oldest one just watched the two of them and shook his head in amazement. He knew that, no matter what anybody thought, that doctor was going to get into the house in some way--even if he had to come down the chimney like Santa Claus--and drop off that baby.
Before long, the three brothers were sent outside to play.
When they came back in, they were told that they had a brand new baby sister.
The seven year old had no problem with that.
The five year old not only had no problem with that, but he was so excited that he could hardly contain himself.
The two year old still wasn't too keen on the idea that he was no longer the baby of the family, and he didn't know why everybody was making such a fuss over this new arrival. He guessed that having another baby in the house was okay just so long as there was always room for him, too.
One thing he noticed was that she was making this little squeaky whimpering sound, so he observed that she sounded like a rabbit.
He and his baby sister would soon become fast friends who, in the years to come, loved to go outdoors and chase butterflies together.
Besides those three brothers and their baby sister, the children in the family included a boy who was born far too early to survive (who would have been nine had he been born when he was supposed to have been), and another brother and sister who would arrive a few years later.
Sometime tomorrow (April 6), this story will have taken place exactly 91 years ago, because the baby rumored to have been in the doctor's bag just happens to be my mom, Lillian Ainsley (Jobe) Phillips, who will be celebrating another birthday.
The three brothers in the story grew up to be my uncles:
George Willard Jobe (Uncle George) June 8, 1914-December 6, 1998
Owner/Operator of Cloverdale Garage in Cloverdale, IN
William Henry MacDonald Jobe (Uncle Donald) September 18, 1916-February 19, 1941
Did some barbering and worked at Guide Lamp (Division of GM) in Anderson, IN until Bright's Disease made him no longer able to keep working there.
Finley Ralph Jobe (Uncle Finley) July 16, 1919-May 7, 1993
Served in Navy and became a Navy barber in time. Eventually was a barber at Nameless Barber Shop in San Francisco, CA.
I'll be sharing more about my family in future columns, but, for now, I'll sign off. It will soon be April 6. I'll let you know what all takes place when I write here again next Friday...
