• 15 Dec, 2025 *

"I’m a girl!"

I was admitted to the hospital after having a doctor’s appointment, all by myself, during my school lunch break at noon. The school was in a town located 30 miles from home. The doctor’s office was located within the hospital.

I never saw my parents for two days. I never even knew if they knew I was in the hospital as we did not have a home phone, and our truck was broken down.

While I was in the hospital at about age 8 or 9, having been diagnosed with rheumatic fever, they provided me with boy’s pajamas. The problem, as I viewed it, I was a young girl, not one of my brothers. I was told that was all they had for me to wear.

The thing is that I was placed in the Adult Ward because the Children’s Ward was full. There was a lovely lady in the next bed to mine. So it was a blessing to me. Though, I did not realize it, I was crying in my sleep. She pulled my bed beside hers to comfort me. Perhaps she had children at home missing her as I was my parents.

One day the nurse asked me, "Have you had a bowel moment today?" Very indignantly, I responded, "I am a girl! I don’t have balls!"

Needless to say, the nurse made a quick exit.

After she stopped laughing, the lady in the next bed explained what the nurse had asked me. She used language I understood.

Oh well, I am sure all on staff had a good laugh that day, and for many more days with family and friends after.

I know I do as an adult and feel embarrassed by know I was just a kid, in a world much bigger than my child mind could understand. And, it all started with them providing me with boy’s pajamas.

Note: When I was released two weeks later, they took me around to all of the rooms on the ward, and I received congratulations on recovering and gifts of fruit and candy. My brothers were so happy to dig into it when I got home.