Once upon a time, their was a nice married lady who was "goin' through the change". "And about time," she told her husband as their teenage sons argued and their teenage daughter giggled on the phone to her girlfriend. He merely nodded as he read the evening paper.
What the nice lady didn't know was that there was more "change" going on than she'd imagined! When her husband mentioned that she was "puttin' on a little weight...but it looks good on ya", and her daughter and mother both accused her of moodiness, she secretly visited the doctor in the next town over to confirm her worst suspicions. Growing inside her was a whole new person!
For many weeks, she struggled with her thoughts. As much as she loved her children, she was looking forward to GRANDPARENTING, not PARENTING... not at HER age...not AGAIN! She found herself feeling scared, alone, ridiculous, ashamed, and humiliated. How could she NOT want her own child? How could she face 2AM feedings? What would her kids think of her being pregnant? What about all the "funny looks" the townfolks would send her way? Wouldn't they all have a good laugh at her expense! But what would the parish priest say? The church was adamant that all life was sacred, and she'd always believed it, always been glad...before.
She finally broke her self-imposed isolation and took her husband into her confidence, for all the good it did her! Instead of helping her out, he joined her in her confusion and mixed feelings. They talked and talked and talked until they were tired of the sounds of their own voices! Finally, they realized that, in spite of their ages, they were sounding just like two kids who'd gotten themselves "in trouble"! How did "kids" handle it?
There was that red-haired gal that lived over by the tracks. Everybody knew she was "loose" and one day she up and went to stay with her "sick ol' granny". That was it! The nice lady would imitate the red-haired gal! Of course, it was a little different...she had responsibilities as a wife and mother. She'd have to tell her mother the truth...Mama lived next door and would know if anyone in the family was ill enough to need long term nursing care...
And, Mama pulled through, "like Mamas are supposed to do," thought the nice (pregnant) lady. So, "Aunt Jessy out in Arizona" was invented. The children were told that Aunt Jessy was in need of care since she'd broken her hip and Granny wasn't well enough to go but would stay and help out at home.
Just 25 miles down the highway was a good sized city. They found a cheap apartment and the nice lady moved into it, using a fake name. She found a doctor she'd never met before, and told him that she wanted to find a home for the baby she was going to deliver in just a couple of months. He agreed to help her with the details, and she began to feel that maybe, one day, things would be OK.
HINT: Not all "crisis pregnancies" are experienced by immature, irresponsible, teenagers, but all of them lead to the same fears and feelings.
