Mom's First Attack

“Linda, mom passed out! Can you call Alan and ask him what I should do? I don't think mom would want me to call 911, but I don't know what to do.”

“Of course,” my younger sister assured me. “Then I'll come right over.”

“Thanks.”

I pushed my cell phone back in my pocket and bent back over mom. Her eyes twitched, and it looked like maybe she was starting to come around.

“Mom, are you alright?” I begged as I tried to bunch the edge of her bedspread under her head in a sort of pillow.

Mom blinked her eyes, slowly focusing on me.

“What happened?” she whispered weakly.

“I don't know, mom. You passed out. I've called Linda, and she's getting Alan to come over.”

“Oh, call him and tell him not to come,” mom begged weakly. “I'll be alright.”

I wasn't so sure, but I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and called Linda back.

“Mom's coming to, and she says she doesn't need Alan,” I explained.

“He's already on his way,” Linda answered.

“I don't want to bother him,” Mom worried when I told her, pulling the edge of her bedspread towards her feebly, obviously embarrassed at the thought of her son-in-law finding her laying on the floor in the middle of her bedroom.

Jumping up, I pulleded one of the blankets off the bed and covered her up just as Alan and Linda hurried into the house. One of the best things about living in Snowflake was being so close to Alan's medical clinic.

“Mom, are you doing OK?” he asked her tenderly as he knelt beside her. I could see from the look on his face that he was as worried as I was. Mom's face was not nearly as purple as it had been, but she still looked awful.

“I'm so sorry, Alan,” mom began apologizing.

“Don't be,” he assured her gently. “It was a slow day at work, anyway, and I needed something to wake me up.” Turning to me, he asked, “What happened, Gale?”

“I'm not sure,” I admitted. “Mom and I went to the Temple this morning and mom was OK, but on the way home she told me she didn't think she could go anymore. Changing into her Temple dress, then back into her street clothes wears her out. After we got home I helped her into her room, and she said she was going to sit in her chair and rest for awhile, so I went upstairs to work on the computer. After awhile I thought I heard her call, so I hurried downstairs. As I came around the door I saw mom standing at the foot of her bed, leaning over it. She started to straighten up and just toppled over. I ran to catch her but she had already hit the ground before I caught hold of her shoulders. I did keep her from hitting her head on the floor, though. Her face was totally dark purple and her eyes were open, but she was out cold. I didn't know what to do, so I tried to help straighten her out on her back and tilt her head so she wouldn't swallow her tongue, then I called Linda.”

“Well, mom,” Alan said after checking her pulse, “I think you're going to be OK, so I'm going to leave you with Gale and Linda, but I want you to call me if you need me.”

“Thank you, Alan,” mother whispered, obviously embarrassed that she had caused Alan so much trouble, and mortified that he'd seen her lying on the floor in such a condition. “I'm sorry you had to leave work.”

“Don't be,” he assured her gently, brushing the hair back from her forehead. “You know I'd do anything for you, but I think you're in good hands now.”

After Alan left Linda and I put our hands behind mom's shoulders and helped ease her up into a sitting position. Then I got a wash cloth and cleaned her up a little, she had been lying in a puddle of sick. After awhile she got enough strength back for us to get her into the bathroom. Then I got a bucket and cleaned up the carpet and the bathroom floor. When she was strong enough, Linda and I helped mom into the shower and washed her off, then put her to bed.

“I'm so sorry I didn't know you were sick,” I told mom as I sat on the bed beside her. “I should have stayed with you after we got home.”

Mom smiled weakly. “I didn't know I was so sick, either,” she assured me. “I thought I would just sit in my chair and rest, but then I came to lying on the floor, and realized I'd passed out. I got up to go into the bathroom and was sick before I could make it, so I tried to clean it up and I guess I passed out again.”

“You sure did,” I told her. “You scared me silly when you fainted. I'm afraid you're going to be black and blue from falling down. But at least you're OK now.”

Dad's Life Story

Well, I'm home again, for a little while.  Alyssa didn't have her baby yet, but we decided it would be more peaceful at her house if the girls and I went home until she goes into labor, which could be any moment or a week.  So for now, I'm back on schedule with posting one story each day. 

Today I thought I would take a break from telling my personal memories and post some of my dad's autobiography.  His birthday is this Wednesday, so now is a good time to tell about him.  His name was Ralph, Edward Russell, and he was, is, my hero.

My Life Story

 Chapter I  

My Parents and Early Home

By Ralph E. Russell

  

My father, Ernest Edward Russell.....was born December 24, 1880, at Eager, Arizona.  When he was ten they moved to the Gila Valley... Life was hard there, but the family remained in the area until dad was grown. 

In the fall of 1911, when he was 21, dad came to Tempe to go to college.  He worked for the US Department of Agriculture as an entomologist....for thirty years.

Mother, Ethel H Stewart, was born March 3, 1894 ...in her parent’s home on the corner of

West Main Street

and

Alma School Road

.   Mother graduated form Mesa High School and from Tempe Normal School and was awarded a teaching certificate.  She taught for several years...

Mother and dad were second cousins, and when dad was twenty nine and thinking of marriage, mom was probably the best looking eligible female he knew.  They were married...on June 1, 1920.

In 1927, dad was moved to Tempe and they bought what was left of Grandpa Stewart's homestead, 27 acres on

Alma School Road

and

West Main Street

.  I was born there the next year; in the same room my mother was born.  Dad established a small dairy and we all grew up milking and feeding cows.  The City of Mesa was a long way off and we didn't go there very often.  In fact, I probably went to Tempe where dad worked or even to Phoenix where mother did most of her shopping for clothes almost as often as Mesa.

As far back as I can remember I spent at least part of every summer until I went into the army hauling hay.  Dad grew watermelons one year and another year we had a big field of tomatoes, but we always had hay and cows.  We also had at least one horse.  Old Polly was the horse we rode most as children.  She was so fat we sometimes used the step ladder to climb on her back.

The house we lived in ....was built in the beginning by Grandpa Stewart.  It was an interesting house to me.  It was mostly made of adobe but some soft red brick was used and also some wood siding which came from Prescott in the very early days.  The roof was cedar shingles and the early nails were cast iron with square heads. 

..... We didn't have a regular hot water heater like we think of now until I was in high school.  To get hot water for our Saturday night baths we built a fire under a tank.  We had many palm trees so we used the dried palm limbs for the fire.  They didn't burn long, but they were very hot. 

I remember heating water for mother to wash clothes in an old tub outside over an open fire.  Mother put lie in the water to make it soft, then skimmed it off before cutting up a bar of soap into it,  We carried the water in a bucket to the wash machine on the back porch. When mother had a lot of fat she made her own soap.  When we killed the pig we made enough soap to last a whole year.

Mother was good to us kids.  I think she had a lot of love for everyone.  I do not remember friction in our home; we all got along quite well most of the time.  Mother was the teacher and dad was the disciplinarian. When dad said to do something he meant now!  Mother would thump us on the head with her thimble when she got disgusted with us.

Mother was promised in her patriarchal blessing that she would have the privilege of entertaining one of the three Nephites.  During the depression there were thousands of 'tramps' traveling along the railroad tracks close to our home and almost every day for many years one or more of them was fed by mother.

Dad worked very hard.  It seemed to me he was gone working most of the time I was growing up. He rarely had time to play.  I was the middle child and felt especially loved.  I'm sure mom and dad loved all their children equally, but I felt they specially loved me.  Stewart was the oldest. David was next, four years later me, two years later Dan, then two more years Ray.  Mother and dad always wanted a daughter; dad thought a red headed one would do just fine.

Dad was in the Sunday School Superintendency when I was young and when the old Fourth Ward was divided and the Alma Ward was formed dad was in the first bishopric.  In later life dad and I were especially close.  Our interests were alike and we spent a lot of time together.  We found the Haigler Creek property together and both built cabins there.  We liked to go out to the farm in east Mesa to look after the cattle. 

Both mother and dad lived with us before they had to be put in extended care facilities before they died.  We buried mom next to her father in the Mesa cemetery and dad next to her.  I dearly love my parents.  Mom was always so optimistic and full of love for everyone and dad truly wanted to do what was right.