Thursday's Child Has Far To Go

For the first time in 20 years, I am not spending the day with my oldest on her birthday. 20 years ago today I set my alarm very early to go to St. Mary's hospital to be induced. I was going to have my first child. I didn't know what I was having. I chose to be surprised. The baby chose to stay inside for as long as possible. Originally due on the 7th of September, the wee one decided it was too comfortable inside, and was going to wait it out. Hence the induction on the morning of the 24th of September. It was a LONG day, and when I say long I mean never ending. Even with the induction, which, by the way, throws you into hard labor right away, I still wasn't progressing at all. Finally after about 7 1/2 hours, the Pitocin was stopped, and it was decided that C-section was the safest option for Mom and baby. However, my OBGYN was held up at another hospital, and at 7PM, twelve hours after we had started this journey, we were still waiting. He finally arrived around 8PM, and then I felt like a race car making a pit stop at Indy. They transferred me from hospital bed to surgical bed. Next thing I knew, we are racing down the hall to the surgical suite, and by 8:16, I had a 9lb. 10oz. baby girl. We were prepared with a boy and girl name, depending, so Leanna Michelle was officially a part of our family. The next week was filled with ups and downs as we got used to each other, but pretty soon I got the hang of motherhood, and it was good.
There is a poem that I have always loved, and I have actually sung this as a choral piece:
Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace,
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
Thursday's child has far to go,
Friday's child is loving and giving,
Saturday's child works hard for a living,
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day
Is bonny and blithe and good and gay.
Leanna Michelle is a Thursday's child, as is her sister, and as am I. When I was growing up and heard that poem and applied the Thursday phrase to myself, I always thought of it in a negative way like, "Oh, great. I've got far to go." as in I have a long way to go before I can achieve my goals and dreams. Looking at my precious first born, I have learned from her determination and passion and resilience that "far to go" means there is no limit to where she can go. She will go far. Don't believe me? Just ask her! She began her first year in college this year. She is the first in our family to go to college. I am so proud of her. She has only been there for a little under two months, and she is already taking the place by storm. She has been cast as Charlotte in Charlotte's Web, the freshman showcase show, and she is the freshman blog writer for the Theatre Department. You can follow her writings as well here. Today she turns 20. She is no longer a teenager. She is a young woman embarking on a glorious journey to an amazing future. How fortunate I am that I am along for the ride!