A Little Background

I understand that the day I was delivered to my parents was brisk with the onset of an unwelcomed late splash of snow and freezing rain which once again blanketed the wilderness landscape. The cold, winter days were gray and dreary amidst hope that spring would arrive once again, bringing color back into the lives of those that lived in the wilderness, or what my mother referred to as the 'Outback'. The snow was still piled high along the roadways and buildings were still adorned with melting icicles reminding us of a winter not yet gone. The daytime temperature reached a warm 37 degrees, which was warm enough to melt the newly fallen snow and ice, while reminding everyone that winter hadn't loosened its grip just yet.

The Wilderness Health Outreach Medical Center was conveniently located in the middle of the 'Wilderness', which the state defined as having a population of less than 2,750 in three sections of property, or 1,920 acres of wilderness land. Some patients of the medical center traveled distances in excess of one hundred miles just to see an OB/GYN. The wilderness medical center was a full-service health care provider for everything from emergency surgery to well-baby care. The medical center was owned and operated by a private foundation that provided the funding for the staff and equipment, including an outreach medivac helicopter.

My future father is an OB/GYN and my future mother is a pediatrician and general practitioner. Together they administer the medical center health programs for the foundation and more importantly, for the patients that seek quality care for themselves or a loved one.

The day was 'Good Friday' and Easter was just two days away. In town, you–ng girls walked around in their newly acquired Easter dresses, while still being clothed in layers to react to the changing weather conditions. Young boys were dressed in white shirts and some with ties as the local children excitedly awaited the joy of the Easter egg hunt and Easter surprises. Within our small wilderness community was St. John's Catholic School; the only private school in the wilderness area. It was easy to identify the Catholic school girls who wore the traditional white blouse, tie, color coded vest and plaid skirts. The boys wore black pants, white shirt and tie and of course their color-coded vest. Each grade through eighth had a different colored vest which quickly identified what grade each student was in. The only exception was for the children preparing for their First Communion Easter morning. They wore all white and you could hear parents reminding their child to keep clean for their First Communion ceremony.

In the Outback, Easter is an exciting time, exceeded only by Christmas and birthdays. My parents established a community Easter egg hunt which was held at the Catholic school on Good Friday each year. The wilderness medical center sponsored an annual coloring contest for the best colored Easter rabbit. For those children that participated in the coloring contest, the grand prize was a two-pound chocolate Easter egg and the five second place winners in each age group received a one-pound chocolate Easter egg. Every coloring participant received a four-ounce chocolate egg. Once the colored rabbits were finished and judged, the school taped a rabbit on every door where the children could find Easter eggs hidden out of their direct sight. The medical center provided five hundred plastic eggs throughout fourteen classrooms at the school, with some eggs being filled with coins and others with candy or toys. Regardless of the egg's content, my parents explained to me that the children were provided with a safe environment where they can enjoy being children for another year. Some rooms were exclusively for toddlers and then various age groupings all the way up to eighteen years of age. This year eighty-seven boys and girls participated in the center sponsored Easter egg hunt. There was one grand prize which was a five-pound chocolate Easter bunny and five second prizes of one-pound chocolate bunnies. Every child received a six-ounce chocolate bunny to take home for participating in the Easter egg hunt. My parents made sure that no child left the annual Easter egg hunt empty-handed.

On this particular Good Friday, the medical center waiting room was surprisingly empty with three in-patients in the hospital wing. The last newborn baby left with her anxious parents leaving the nursery department without babies. My parents decided that this year they would close the medical center over the Easter weekend to enable all, but two volunteer nurses and one volunteer doctor, to spend time with their families over the Easter weekend. My father explained to my mother and grandmother that he needed a break to feel human again. It had been a difficult week, especially on my father who performed eight natural births and three 'C- Sections and sadly one baby was stillborn which brought great sadness to everyone involved in the birth. The young mother could be heard crying down the hallway and there was nothing that my parents could do to ameliorate her terrible loss. I understand that the young woman's pastor tried to explain to her that it was God's will. As I read about the events of that day, I guess I wondered why God would will the death of an innocent unborn child.

I Am a Gift from God

In order to understand the miracle of my birth, you need some background on my future family and how I came into being as my parents' daughter. My name is Hayden Elizabeth Gehardi and I am a true gift from God. While I firmly believe that every conceived child is a gift from God, my birthmother was an angel sent to earth to deliver me to my future parents who could not have children except through...