Time Warp

Must have been the wine I had at dinner last night. Drinking too late in the day sometimes does funny things with my sleep. This time, I popped awake at 3 am with a vivid memory of something that happened in early 1962.

I was working with my father carrying boxes and stuff. I was in college and was working a couple of jobs to make ends meet. In any event, I got a phone call from my mother saying that an envelope had arrived from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine (where I had a applied...but I digress) and did I want her to open it. No, I did not. I would face the disappointment on my own.

When I arrived home several hours later, my sister and her husband were hanging out at the house...something that just didn't happen. There was an odd tension in the air as I was handed the envelope which I deposited in my room before returning to the kitchen for supper. It was clear that everyone was there to see what was in the envelope, and I wanted to read it on my own time. My brother in law had been to college, and I was the only other to do so. Other than an uncle, no one had gone to medical school in our family. This was, potentially, a big deal for us all.

Well, I finally went to my room, closed the door and slowly opened the epistle. The brilliant red insignia of the university and the heavy bond paper unfolded as I began to read what appeared to be a form letter. I expected the worst. But, alas, I was being invited to be in the class of '59. The feeling was overwhelming, other-worldly. I was humbled. I had been accepted to med school and, as the poet said, that has made all the difference in the (my) world.

You know, I think I will have some wine before going to bed tonight.

Paddle safe...

DS