Two Life-Changing Days In My Life

I have been told that things which could change your life happen in an instant and you don’t even realize it until long after the event happened. One of those days occurred when I was three and a half years old. On this day, my Nannie took my sister, Diana, and I for a very long ride. On the way, she explained that she was taking us to a very nice place where we would be with lots of other children. Nannie explained that she had to start going to school and then she was going to get a job nursing and that she wouldn't be able to take care of us all the time like she had been doing up to that point. I remember when the car slowed down that we were at a place with lots of brick buildings. We went into a large area and waited while Nannie was taken into another room. When Nannie came out, she looked at me and asked me to keep an eye out for Diane while we were there because she wouldn't be able to do that. I remember telling her that I would. Nannie went into the room again and someone came and took me to one builing and Diane to another. Now how was I supposed to take care of Diane this way.

In this building were a lot of girls who were coloring a large picture. I asked if I could help and was given a crayon. I guess what I colored was not what they wanted colored because I remember shortly afterwards the girls being very upset and I was made to sit on a row of wooden toy boxes. It was very uncomfortable as I had on a pretty little dress and the boxes weren't padded. I remember sitting there by myself for a long time and finally cried myself to sleep. Shortly after I ws wakened we ate and then it was bedtime. Laying in bed and trying to get to sleep, I had a strange feeling that whatever lay ahead was something that would have to be endured, but I definitely wouldn’t like it.. Ahead lay many confrontations but sleep was first.

Several years later in the fall of 1961 and being all of eight years old, there was another day which I knew would change my life. It was late afternoon when Mr. & Mrs. Sweinhart came to the orphanage and picked up both my sister and me. It seemed like we drove for a long time and I watched the sun starting to fall in the sky. Never having been one to like long car rides and usually getting carsick, I was hoping that we would get wherever it was we were going very soon. . Luckily, the car finally stopped in the biggest town I had ever seen. There were rows and rows of duplexes, lots of cars parked by the sidewalk, and people everywhere.

Upon entering the house, the first thing I saw was a great big recliner that seemed too small for the man sitting in it reading a newspaper. Next to the recliner, there was an overstuffed armchair and next to that was a very large couch that could have seated six of me. Then I saw David coming from the kitchen and started to feel a little better. It sure was nice to see him again and the thought of being able to stay with him for awhile made me very happy.

After we got cleaned up, it was announced that it was just about bedtime. Hearing the music for “The Lassie Show”, I asked if it would be possible for me to watch the show. Since watching television was something that was a special privilege at the orphanage, this was a very important request for me to make. Upon getting an affirmative answer, I sat very quietly on the couch and watched as much as possible before falling asleep while a commercial was on.

In the morning, I woke up on the couch instead of a bed and was a little confused. How do you make a couch? While trying to fold the blanket that someone had covered me with, I heard laughing and quiet talking coming from the kitchen. In the kitchen was Diane, David, Mrs. Sweinhart and her mother. They were having breakfast and it looked like they were also having a good time. After they noticed me, Mrs. Sweinhart asked what I wanted to have for breakfast. I had never been given a choice before and started feeling more at ease. After breakfast, we were told to get ready so we could go home. “Isn’t this home? ” I asked. “Oh, no,” Mrs. Sweinhart said. “This is my parents home, John and Lillian Fretz. We didn’t want it to be real dark outside when we got home last night so we came here instead.”

Mrs. Sweinhart looked at me and said, “We are planning to adopt you and Diane and we want you to call us Mom and Dad. I was wondering if you would mind if we changed your name to Marbeth Marie Sweinhart instead. We are going to be renaming your sister, Diane, and her name is going to be Diana May Sweinhart.” At that moment Diane chimed in and said, “I like it because that makes me a goddess.”

“As long as it is okay with Nannie, it is okay with me,” I answered. That is when I was told that from now on it would sound better if we called our grandmother Nana instead of Nannie. Did I ever have a lot to think about!

After another short ride which seemed to take even longer than the one the night before, we arrived in Skippack. We pulled up in front of this great big white house with a front porch that covered the whole front of the house. The house had two floors and sat on the top of a small hill. It looked like something out of a fairy tale.

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