A few minutes later, all the woman were happily chatting and laughing over little pants suits with dogs of bears on them or little pajamas with feet and snaps on one side. By the time they headed to the cash register they had two carts loaded down with stuff. Baby monitors, clothes, a car seat, bottles, diapers, a mobile for the crib and dozens of other items.
"I'll buy the stroller," said Beth, "for the baby shower."
"You don't have to do that mom," Shari protested.
"And I'll pay for the baby monitor," said Kate not giving Shari a chance to protest further.
"I'll pay for the mobile," said Rachel.
"I'll take the car seat," said Lisa.
By the time they were done one cart was almost empty, "Okay, okay I give in," said Shari laughingly. Before they knew it they were through the line and in the car on their way home with two cars full of merchandise. "What a fun day," said Shari.
"But exhausting," said Beth. "Of course, I'm not young as I used to be."
"I know I'm tired to," said Shari. Kate and Rachel agreed.
"It's always tiring being on your feet all day," said Rachel. "Of course a good night's sleep should cure that."
"It not very often we get a girls only day out," said Kate.
"Very true," Beth said and Shari, Rachel and Kate agreed all at once.
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
"Hello, Mrs. Black! Welcome back and I see you have company," said Mrs. B with a smile. "You're starting to poke out there. When are you due?"
"According to my doctor, I'm going to give birth in four months. Hopefully, this little one won't be late. I had a test just to make sure everything is okay."
"I had three kids. With the first one, a boy named Joe Jr. after his dad, he came four days early, the next one, a girl named Millie after my mother, came a month late, and my last, another boy named James, came on time, but 22 hours of labor with that one! Oy vey! They were all a handful, sometimes you want to strangle them, but they are all great kids really and now they have kids of their own! You know what is the best part of it all—having their kids do to my kids what they did themselves to me—they write on the walls, mess up the house, etc. Sometimes it's great to just have them for a little bit and then give them back to their folks," she said with a wink. "But you are probably looking forward to this baby so I won't tell you any more horror stories."
"That's all right. I don't know if I will be a good mother or not. I'll just have to wait and see," said Sara.
Mrs. B patted her hand softly and said, "Don't worry. You have your husband. I don't know how I kept myself sane without my Joe. Your husband will help you with everything unless you have to keep asking him more than once."
Suddenly, the door opened and Dr. Bernie stepped out with a smile. "Oh, Sara you're here! Good, then let's go to my office! See ya later, Mrs. B!"
Mrs. B looked at the doctor sternly. "Did you clean your office this time, young lady?"
Bernie sighed and said, "Yes, mother!"
"Good. Then I'll go make some more coffee for you two."
"See you in a bit then," said Bernie as she let Sara go in first and then followed behind her, closing the door. The two of them walked back to her office and Bernie opened the door. Sara gasped.
"Is it that bad?" asked Bernie.
"It's so—clean!" said Sara.
"So?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"It's so clean that you could probably eat off it and see yourself at the same time," Sara said.
"I hate clean! When I was young, my mother always tried to get me to keep my room clean, but no matter what I would do, I couldn't keep it clean. So when I got married and became a mother myself, I tried to keep my house as clean as my mother's. Do you know what she said when she saw my house?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"No. What did she say?" asked Sara curious.
"She said that I did a good job, but she did ask why I could keep a house clean and not my room as a child," Dr. Tyner replied.
"What did you say to her?" asked Sara curiously.
"I'm a responsible adult now and besides, I told her that I would have to with my brood. If it wasn't my son in the mud or my daughter in the juice, then it was my husband out mowing the yard."
"What did she say to that?" asked Sara curiously.
"She laughed and said, 'That's all too true.' We talked for awhile and Mom and Dad went home later that night after having an exhausting afternoon with the kids."
"Where is your mom now?" asked Sara.
"Oh, she and Dad are still alive and still living in their own home, but that don't mean that we don't worry about them. My folks are getting old and I'm trying to do the best I can to take care of them like they did with my siblings and me. Oops, Listen to me. I'm ranting on about my family and this session is supposed to be about you. Sara, what have you been this week?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Uhm, I had a test a couple of days ago to make sure the babies; were okay and the doctor said everything was progressing normally. I'm thinking about getting my brother-in-law Stephen to make baby furniture, but he's doing furniture for my sister-in-law Shari too. I'd hate to disturb him," Sara said.
"Who's Stephen?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Dave, my brother, is married to Stephen's sister Kate," Sara explained.
"Ah, so you are related by marriage. Does Kate and Stephen have a big family?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Yes, there were seven, now there are only six—three men and three women," Sara said.
"What about their parents?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Well, all their parents are dead," Sara said.
"What do you mean by 'all their parents'? Are there more than one—products of several marriages—" Dr. Tyner asked curiously. "Adoptions?"
"Actually, all seven of them met in an orphanage called Trevor House where children who are too old to stay in the regular orphanage went. You know most parents want younger kids or babies. They decided that they would be each other's family instead. So they adopted the name O'Malley and became a family when they were old enough. They are all quite close to each other like if they were truly born of the same family. In fact, they're closer than a lot of brothers and sisters with the same parents."
"That's quite interesting, but you said that there were seven in the family. What happened to the seventh member?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Their sister Jennifer had cancer, a rare form of it, and died. It affected them all deeply. Plus, she had gotten married to her true love Tom and she was a pediatrician helping others. Also, she was a Christian and slowly she tried to get the rest of her family to become Christians themselves. Even after her death all of her family except Stephen had become Christians," Sara explained
"That's good. I've been a Christian my whole life, specifically I'm a Baptist born and raised. Have you always been a Christian?" Dr. Tyner asked
"Yes, but I did have some doubts though," Sara said.
"Who doesn't? But I always believed in the Lord, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Have you read the Bible cover to cover?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Yes," Sara answered.
"I didn't until college. What was your favorite story from the bible?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"I don't really have a favorite bible story," Sara admitted.
"I have several. I like the ones where Jesus is healing various people and journeying his way through the world preaching his Father's Word, the story of Queen Esther, Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi, and the older tales featuring Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Abraham, and Noah. Did you know that the name Ruth means 'friendship'?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"I didn't know that. How do you come to know that?" asked Sara.
"My grandmother had an old bible. Got it as a present from her folks when she got married and has passed it down to my mom who down to me. It told the meanings of every name in the Bible and where they were in the Bible themselves. It's still very interesting though."
"Yes, it sounds good," said Sara.
"Do you have something like that in your family? A Bible or something?" asked Bernie.
"No, I don't," Sara admitted.
"Speaking of which, how about your family?" asked Bernie.
"What about it?" asked; Sara.
"Besides Dave and all the O'Malleys, have you talked to your father at all?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"Not really. Dave talks to him more than I do. When I was young, I was just in the way. Now, it's good that he doesn't keep in contact with me," Sara said.
"Is it really, Sara? You have to be hurt by being abandoned by your father not once but twice. The first time was emotionally and then the second time was physical abandonment. Do you ever think of him at all, Sara?" Dr. Tyner asked.
Sara began to cry and said, "He was my daddy! Why couldn't he love both of us? I loved Kim and she loved me! It makes me sick to think that he would actually abandon us with that—that man! All because he refused to pay for both of us—to take us from the clutches of Thomas Krane! If something like that happened to my child, I would move heaven and earth to get them back. How could he?" Sara demanded.
"Have you or Dave told him that he is going to be a grandfather?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"No, I don't think we have and he's already a grandfather through Dave," Sara said.
"Do you think he would like to know?" Dr. Tyner asked.
"I don't know. Do you think he would care about his grandchild after what he did to me? I don't want him to abandon my child," said Sara.
"Parents can do funny things sometimes. Take this for instance, one couple I knew as a child were funny. The wife loved cut-glass crystal and her husband bought several pieces of it for her worth hundreds of dollars. She would spank her son for even running through the house, rattling the crystal on its glass shelves. Finally, years later, their first grandchild comes to visit with their son. Their son finished school, went to college, got a job, got married and they had their first kid, a boy."
"While his dad and grandparents are in the kitchen, he goes over to the shelves, which hold the crystal. He's starting to pull up on things so he pulls on this shelf. Suddenly, in the kitchen, they hear a BAM. They run to see what it is and they come to see the baby on the floor with the shelves down with the crystal shattered all around him. Thankfully, he wasn't hurt. The son picked him up and was about to spank him when his mother said, 'You aren't going to spank my grandchild.' Then she cuddled her grandson close and tried to soothe him. Then she said, 'Did Danny get hurt? Grandma's sorry she had all that junk to tip over on him.' This caused both father and son to look at each other with surprised looks on their faces. After; all these years!" Dr. Tyner told the story with humor lacing her voice
Sara laughed and said, "What do she do with all the broken pieces?"
"She swept them up and dumped them in the trash. All that crystal and all those hundreds of dollars spent—all for nothing," Dr. Tyner said.
"Well, I'm never going to collect crystal or anything of that nature," Sara said.
"Yes, but maybe you could get in contact with your father," Dr. Tyner suggested gently.
"What for?" Sara asked.
"Maybe you can finally ask him—why? Why didn't you love me enough? If he can't, then you can wish him off a pier or a cliff if you want to," Dr. Tyner explained.
"Okay, maybe I'll try. If I can't, then I'll take your other suggestion. Okay?" Sara asked.
"All right, maybe take Adam and your brother Dave for backup."
"Heck, maybe I should take my brother, my husband, and the whole O'Malley clan with me! At least it would be interesting to see if Jack could slug my father if he gets angry with me," Sarah said laughing at the image that placed in her head.
"I hope you mean that in a humorous bent," said Bernie.
"No, I didn't. Jack has been known to slug someone from making one of his sisters cry and while I'm not his sister, I am his sister-in-law. At least that's what I've heard from Kate. But if you say that this will help, then I'll try it," Sara said.
"Well, I was going to cut short our time today, because I've got to get the kids to their various programs and events. See you in a month, okay?" Dr. Tyner questioned.
"Okay," said Sara as they went out the door of Bernie's office and into the waiting room where Mrs. B checked her out. "Bernie, you have a nice day."
"I will and you do the same."
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
Shari awoke and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. 4:00 am. The pains in her stomach were what had awakened her and she had a feeling that contractions were starting, but wasn't that impossible considering she was nearly three weeks early? No, some mother's delivered perfectly healthy babies a little early and it looked like it was going to be that way this time. Of course, it could be false contra…
Suddenly the pain in her stomach increased and she was suddenly wet all over. Her water had just broken. This was no false contraction, this was real. She hated to wake Marcus, he needed his sleep, but this was quickly becoming an emergency.
"Marcus?" she whispered. "Marcus?" she called again shaking his shoulder gently.
Marcus awoke with a start at Shari's voice calling his name and her hand shaking his shoulder. He was instantly fully awake. "What?" Marcus asked turning in her direction and suddenly noticed the sheets were wet.
"My water just broke," said Shari with a grimace of pain as another contraction hit.
Marcus didn't bother to ask questions and got up from the bed. He tried to appear calm as he quickly dressed, but really inside he was a coiled ball of tension and excitement. He would have to call the rest of the family they would want to be here for this. Finally, he was dressed and helped Shari to her feet and into a robe. He grabbed the already prepared suitcase with one hand and put his arm around her waist with the other. He helped her down the stairs and to the car.
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
They arrived at D. C. General half an hour later, Shari panting the whole way so they're hadn't been much conversation. Marcus tried to help by reminding her of the Lamaze classes she had taken and its instructions. The doctor had already been called from Marcus's cell phone and should be waiting.
A wheelchair and attendant were waiting at the emergency entrance as Marcus pulled up. Marcus got out of the car, and opened Shari's door for her and helped his wife out and into the wheelchair. "I'll meet you upstairs after I park the car okay minx?"
"Okay," Shari agreed still panting.
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
Marcus parked the car and headed upstairs anxious to be with his wife. He exited the elevator a minute later and approached the receptionist desk.
"May I help you?" asked the matronly woman behind the desk pushing her wire frame glasses up on her nose.
"Yes, can you tell me what room Shari O'Malley is in?"
"Are you family sir?"
"Yes actually. I'm her husband Marcus."
"Room 510 young man," said the lady.
"Thank you," said Marcus blushing at being called a young man. He wasn't young by any stretch of the imagination, but he supposed, to her, he was still young. He hurried down the corridor and found room 510 a minute later. He had called Kate from the car and told her that Shari was at the hospital having the baby. She had promised to call the others and that they would be there in the next few hours. None of the family would want to miss this. He entered the room after putting on a hospital gown, gloves and surgical mask and hurried to her side. "You okay minx?" asked Marcus running a hand gently along her cheek. Her hair was slicked back with sweat and her face was shiny. The sweat dripped off of her in long streaks and dropped somewhere onto the sheets, which were quickly becoming soaked as well.
"Pretty well," said Shari, "Just tired. I hope this baby comes soon or I may not have the strength to push him out."
"I'll be at your side the whole way through helping you," Marcus promised, gently brushing the sweat, slicked hair out of her face. He was also silently praying that everything would turn out well. Shari groaned as another contraction hit and Marcus squeezed her hand encouragingly. Shari lay panting a minute later after the contraction had passed.
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
Eight hours later, Marcus heard the cry of a baby and he looked up from where he had sat down in the room's only chair. The doctor and a nurse were on either side of the bed. "It's a boy," the doctor announced holding the baby by its feet, and slapping his behind and then handed him to Marcus. "You have a fine healthy son Mr. O'Malley."
Marcus took the baby and his tiredness seemed to melt away as he held the tiny form tenderly in his arms being careful to support his head. "Do you have a name for your son?" asked the doctor.
"Davey William O'Malley," said Marcus and Shari together.
"You go inform the rest of the family," Shari told him. "They'll want to know."
"Actually, I called them already. They should already be waiting out in the waiting room for news."
"But how did they get here so fast? Sorry, silly question, Dave right?"
"Of course, although I'll admit it's nice to have a brother-in-law who's also a pilot." Marcus left the room after putting Davey tenderly in Shari's arms. He strode down the corridor to the waiting room and glanced in the door. He saw everyone was waiting for news even Tom and Rachel who would have had to take separate flights. Marcus finally walked quietly into the room.
"Well?" Kate wanted to know, because she saw him first.
"Shari has given birth to a boy. Perfectly healthy and both of them are doing fine—tired but fine."
"When can we see them?" all, of them clamored at once.
"My son should be in the nursery as soon as they clean him up. As for Shari, I'm sure she wouldn't mind visitors, although I think one or two at a time is plenty," Marcus said.
"I think Beth and Josh should go first after all they are her mother and brother," said Rachel sitting with her husband Cole.
"And I agree," said Lisa.
"All right then," said Marcus. "It's room 510. Think you can find it?"
"Yes," said Josh, and Beth nodded.
~~~Beyond the Future~~~
