When Emma was about 8 months old, the NY clan came out to Michigan for a visit. Instead of staying in a hotel, Pam stayed in the guest bedroom (we called it the Bed and Breakfast) so she could spend the mornings and evenings with us. In retrospect, I should have briefed her on the night-time rituals, but I was pretty sure that she would not wake up to Emma's cries. After all, she managed to sleep through doggies barking and jumping on the bed every day at home!
So when Emma started screaming shortly after midnight, I laid in bed for awhile, waiting her out...that was the plan. I would go in every few minutes to reassure her but I would not pick her up. We were trying desperately to get her to comfort herself, to fall back to sleep without needing us. But when Emma's cries stopped abruptly without any help from me, I was worried. I got out of bed and went quietly to her room. There I found my sister, holding Emma and bouncing her gently.
I think I said something like, "Uh! Why did you pick her up?" "She was reaching for me," Pam said. "She was saying, up, up." I remember that the next day, Pam apologized for messing up our plan. But I guess I hope that maybe somewhere in Emma's little head she has a memory of Angel Pammie coming to rescue her when she was sad. She did that for so many of us, didn't she?
This is a memorial site for the friends and family of Pam D'Ancona. On November 19, 2008, Pam passed away after a too short battle with ovarian cancer. Here, we will attempt to put into words the impact of her wonderful and generous life.
Labels
- In Her Own Words (3)
- Song lyrics (4)
Posts
1 comment:
Hi Meg. Cute story. Pammy had a knack for rescuing those she loved when she said. I can think of countless times when I had thought I messed something up so badly. She would somehow convince me that she thought I did great by the end of the conversation.
Post a Comment