At the time of my birth there were already three anxious siblings waiting for me at home. Sue, Ben and Lucy. Five year old Ben was the most excited, and soon to be the most disillusioned. It really wasn’t his fault, as Winnie had been cheerfully telling everyone for nine months that I was a boy. In fact she and Ben picked out a name for me. I was going to be called Joshua, but Ben had difficulty saying it, so they decided on Jonah. Ben would pat Winnie’s tummy and say “Hi baby brother! Me and you are going to have a puppy!” At last a brother! He had never cared for Sue and Lucy. This baby was going to be all his! He was finally going to even the score, two to two. Winnie brought me home and gave Ben the bad news.
“Guess what Benny boy!, mommy brought you a baby…sister!”
Up to this point he had always assumed that she loved him. He looked at me, threw himself on the floor, and wept bitterly for nine consecutive days. Ben spent the rest of his life reminding me that I was neither a brother nor a puppy, hence my existence in this world was superfluous.
Unfortunately Ben was destined to suffer one more discouraging blow. Yes, another baby brother named Jonah… who would later be called Ruth.
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