Surprise!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With Jerry making plans to come to Kansas, several weeks after she had come to see me, I was set to go to Florida to surprise my Mom.

My youngest sister arrived in Florida first and then my older sister came with her two children and surprised Mom. Remember, Mom was having some health issues one of which she was having a difficult time finding words.

It was a Friday when I arrived in Florida. My sisters and step-Dad met me at the airport. It was very emotional because since the news of my pregnancy, this was the first time I saw my younger sister. Though I had spoken to my older sister, Val, on the phone, I had not yet spoken to my youngest sister, Sam. It was a little bit uncomfortable facing her. I was still struggling with such a sense of shame and more than anything, I did not want my family to be disappointed in me. You know, with so many emotions and things going on, that first initial eye contact was going to be tough for me. My step-Dad met me at the gate and my sisters were waiting by the car for me (it was a very small airport). When I saw Sam, she just embraced me --with the same love and forgiveness I imagine the Prodigal's Father embraced his son with. There was not a speck of condemnation or disappointment in her eyes. She hugged me, we had tears and with no need for words, our hearts spoke. It was like that because my sisters also knew the grace and forgiveness bestowed on them by a loving and merciful God. My sisters and I were kindred by birth and kindred by re-birth.

But eventually, someone had to talk and so to break the silence as I wiped tears from my eyes I said, "So, did you hear I'm pregnant?"

Mom was working that day. She was a receptionist at a public health facility where her bilingual skills (fluent in Spanish as my Mother was from Puerto Rico) were an indispensable tool as they served a very large Hispanic population. Our plan was for all of us to just walk into Mom's work and surprise her.

Mom was not expecting anyone to visit her at work that day so first Sam and Val walked in with the girls, my two nieces, and Mom was ecstatic! She thought they just came by to say hi to her and she was thrilled . . . and then . . from behind my sisters, I stepped out. Mom screamed out loud and ran to me. She grabbed me and held me and was crying and screaming, "I can't believe it!  How did you get away from the Army?" There was quite a bit of commotion so naturally, the office workers all came out front to see what was going on . . in addition, the waiting area was full too.

With all of us girls standing there, my Mom was just hysterical and overtaken with emotion so as her co-workers came out she was trying to explain this all to them and as she was already struggling to find and use words, Mom could not get much out. So standing there, she points to each of us and excitedly says in a sort of disconnected Morse Code fashion, "Her Michigan. Married. Two children. Her college. Illinois. Here on break."

And then Mom points to me and with a group of doctors and office staff gathered and a full waiting area, Mom points to me and says, "Her in Army not married and pregnant by black man."

*cricket cricket*

Okay so --that was awkward. So my sisters and me just smile and look at everyone and politely say, "Its' nice to meet you." We left and told Mom we would see her at home that evening. She literally was floating on cloud nine.

When my sisters and I went out to the parking lot, we were laughing so hard. Dear sweet Mom. She was so excited she had no words -

I am sure Mom told her co-workers about her daughters and in her excitement, she was just trying to introduce us and explain to them who we were, "This is Val my oldest daughter, the one that is married with two children and lives in Michigan. This is my youngest daughter, Sam, that is a college student at Eastern Illinois. This is Melissa, the one that is in the Army stationed at Ft. Riley and she just found out she's expecting."

But you know . . it did not come out quite like that!