No. 3 Vol. 2
February 2021
A Valentine’s Day Story
E
By Richard Mabey Jr. ach of us has within us the power and the ability to uplift another person or to bring someone down. On many levels, from the subconscious decisions we make to the conscious decisions, we enact deeds, speak words, and invoke energies that can bring joy to a person’s heart or bring a sense of shame and hurt. The choice is clearly our own. On Valentine’s Day of 1966, at the age of 12 and in the seventh grade, a dear and wonderful friend made a conscious decision to become a source of upliftment and joy to my life. So much so, that 55 years later, I am writing about that precious moment in time. It was around the dawn of the second week in February of 1966, that I was admitted to the Barnert Hospital for the second time within two months, in my battle with a severe case of Rheumatic Fever. I am sure that the administrators at the Barnert Hospital meant well, but it was a very scary experience for me. Back in 1966, they had something called the Children’s Ward. The room was about half the size of an average high school gymnasium. It is safe to say there were about 50 bedridden children in various stages of healing, lying in their beds, in this big room. There were no walls between the beds. When a child was examined by a nurse or doctor, temporary dividers on wheels were sometimes used to give the child patient some degree of privacy. Visiting hours were
strictly adhered to. They were from ten to twelve in the morning, from two to four in the afternoon, and then from six to eight in the evening. I remember being lonely and missing my pals from school. I missed going to the scout hikes and campouts. I missed going to youth fellowship at my church. And, ironically enough, I missed going to school. For myself, it was a time of reflection, a time of healing, a time of regaining strength. I remember this, oh so well. On the Monday afternoon of February fourteenth, Mom came to visit with me, with her sister Bertha. My sister Patti had made a handmade card and had bought a little box of candies filled inside a red box that was shaped like a heart. Mom brought me three or four comic books. And, Aunt Bert gave me a Mad magazine. And, intermingled between the comic books that Mom gave me, was a card that had been mailed to me at home. I remember looking at the envelope of this very special card. The envelope was hand-written, with a return address from Pamela Rawlings. A certain joy filled my heart when I saw Pamela’s artistic, loopy handwriting. The dots on the i’s and j’s were exaggerated, open circles. It was Pamela’s unique handwriting style. I was kind of shy to open the card with Mom and Aunt Bert by my bedside. I think that my mother sensed my awkward feelings and encouraged me to open Pamela’s card. Aunt Bert also encouraged me to
open the card. And, so I did. It was one of those old-fashioned cards, with flowers on the front of it. But the flowers were cut out, so that the card was not squared off in the upper right-hand corner. I don’t know if they make greeting cards like that any more.
On the left-hand side of the inside of Pamela’s card was a little note of what was happening in school. For some reason, I still remember that Pamela wrote me that she had won second place in the spelling bee in her class. Why is it that certain things stay in continued on page 9
348 Pompton Ave., Cedar Grove 973-748-4411
10-5 MONDAY-FRIDAY • 10-4 SATURDAY Call or stop by for a free quote! No appointment necessary!
ESTABLISHED IN 1980
BUYERS & SELLERS OF GOLD, STERLING SILVER & COINS
PARKING IN REAR
GOLD & SILVER AT AN ALL TIME HIGH. TURN YOUR GOLD & SILVER INTO INSTANT CA$H!