Another Memory

It was at a family gathering at the Outer Banks, going on ten years now. We sat around listening to some of Barbara's stories about being a veterinarian, and the various kinds of animals she had treated. We noticed she wasn't taking any wine. Wendy, I think it was, bought her a pregnancy test, more or less as a joke.

Next morning, very early, we were all awakened by shouts and whoops of joy: "I'm pregnant, I'm pregnant!"

We put Madison, then three, on the phone to relay the good news to her father. "Daddy," she said, "Mommy has a baby."

There was a longish pause and then Madison turned to Barbara. "Daddy wants to know what kind of a baby."