Viola

Today I made a movie. It was, for me, a rather ambitious project that had to be completed in one day. My sister is celebrating her 60th birthday in a week and the family are contributing to a celebratory DVD to give her.

First I talked about the night she was born and what it meant for me, a previously only child, to get a baby sister. I found this a bit strange, all by myself talking into the camera. Then I took her on a tour of my flower garden, showing her the flowers and chatting as I went. My sister lives at the bottom end of the country so spring probably hasn't reached her yet.

Remembering the night she was born really took me back. I was almost ten years old. We were having a movie in our livingroom. It was Blossoms in the Dust. The room was crowded because the two lots of neighbours were invited so they wouldn't be bothered by the noise. Dad was in my bedroom with the 16 mil projector shooting through the door so that the movie would fit on the makeshift screen above the fireplace. Suddenly Mum left the room and shortly came back to announce "My waters have broke!" I had no idea what she was talking about, but it caused instant commotion. The men jumped up and marched out, with Greer Garson fragmented across their faces. The children were hustled off with them. The women fussed around Mum. Dad dithered a bit, torn between his concern for Mum and the need to turn off the projector. Then he dashed off to the village for the emergency truck. Within minutes Mum and Dad set off on the 14 mile trip to the hospital. We never did get to see the end of that movie.

Mum was confined in the hospital for the standard two weeks. On Wednesday my sister's daughter had her second baby. She was discharged from the hospital within two hours of the birth. How times have changed in sixty years.

Edit Since uploading this my sister has rang to say her other daughter had a son today. That's two new grandchildren for her in three days.