The First Broken Bone

The First Broken Bone
by Mary Farley
May 12, 2020

In 1948, Dad had a thyroid problem and went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota for removal of what I believe was a benign tumor.  Grandma Ehlert, mother's mother, came to Fort Dodge to take care of us.  Jim was 7 or 8, I was 6, Jerry was 5.  I think Mom and Dad may have taken Kay and Jean with them.  Grandma was a great cook and so patient with us. We were good kids and very comfortable with her.  I don't know how long they were gone, at least 2 weeks.

Jim and I walked to a Catholic grade school with some other neighborhood children.  It was quite a distance but usually uneventful except for two occasions, this one in the spring of 1948 and one in the winter (more on that later).  I don't know how I arrived home from school without Jim.  There were teenage girls up the street that we walked with so maybe I came home with them.  Grandma was very worried when Jim did not arrive.  

It turns out that he had walked with two brothers who stopped at a ravine with a rope swing.  I don't know the boys names.  They lived about 3 blocks from us on the other side of the railroad tracks.  They showed Jim how to grab the rope that had knots to hold onto and how to swing out over the ravine.  You will have to ask Jim if it was his first swing when he lost his grip and fell into the ravine.  The friends got very frightened when they saw that Jim was hurt and they ran away.  Jim had broken his arm (thank God it wasn't worse ).  He crawled out of the ravine onto the street where a man saw he was dirty and hurt.  He drove Jim home and Grandma took him to the hospital that was about 7 blocks from our house.  He got a cast and sling, and wore them for several weeks including his First Communion. We have the photo.

I only saw the ravine once when Dad went to see it after the accident.  I remember it being deep.  Mom or Dad called the hospital that was near the ravine and told them about the rope.  It was removed soon after the accident.

I don't know if Grandma called mom and dad to tell them about the accident but she was really upset.  When Mother got out of the car upon their return, Grandma begged Mother, "Don't be mad at me Margie!"  I doubt that Mom or Dad were mad at her.  They were concerned about Jim.  I don't think there were any consequences for Jim but he was instructed to stay away from that rope.  The boys parents called and apologized and checked up on Jim's progress but Jim was never as close with those boys again.  

Dad did fine during and after his surgery.  I was so happy to see him be okay that I rushed to the car, and after a hug, I carried his suitcase that had to be bigger than I was to the front steps. It was too heavy for me to get it up the stairs so Dad thanked me for the help and carried it into the house.  Dad started taking the thyroid supplements that he continued to his dying day.