Today, I told my Swedish friend about this.
Many storylines of this book were based on my own life experiences. I was a Playgroup and Plunket mum. This book talks of a hotchpotch SAHM (Stay At Home Mums) jelled by a common denominator, the Playgroup.
Our church Mt Albert Baptist Church decided to give the profits to Plunket. I was very happy because I benefited in a big way from Plunket when I was a young Mother.
I was organising my ESOL student volunteers to bbq the sausage sizzle.
I remember another event when I overheard this lady saying that she is a Plunket lady. I went up to her and asked if she worked at Plunket Landscape Road, and she said yes. I asked if she worked there for a long time, and she said yes. As long as twenty years ago. She said yes.
I hugged her. In my heart, she is symbolic of all the good people who helped me when Andrew was alive. I told her that I was that mother whose baby died. It sort of completed my cycle just as I am writing my book and revisiting that horrible time.
The Plunket Nurse said her name is Jane and asked if I remembered the other nurse. I didn't remember their names or faces, but I remember their kind deeds. They took care of me and my children. Jane said she came to Plunket Landscape Road in 1990, and had heard of me. Of course, I was still going to Plunket in 1990 for my second daughter's excema problem and seeing Dr. Rowley.
Thank you Plunket. You are the “bestiest” as my ESOL kids tell me all the time.
Plunket’s Appeal raises vital funds for a wide variety of services , such as parenting education courses, car seat safety schemes, education in schools, toy libraries and many other valuable resources and programmes.
In the 80s, I was a young mum 3 times. I had no family in New Zealand. Plunket was family to me. Plunket's care was epitomised when I was sick when I was pregnant with Andrew and after he had died. I could never repay what Plunket did for me. I tried by collecting door to door, I tried by writing about Plunket. I wrote in detail about Plunket's help in my book and in my other posts.
Diary of a bereaved Mother http://annkitsuetchin.blogspot.co.nz/
http://ann-mythoughtsandphotos.blogspot.co.nz/2010/11/christmas-in-rocket-park-2010-and.html
http://annkschin.blogspot.co.nz/2009/06/plunket-society.html
But the Plunket Society, www.plunket.org.nz it was different, for once I wasn't the giver. I was a recipient of their work.
When I was a young mum, I didn't have immediate family with me. It was hard especially when I was sick when I was pregnant with my third child. The Plunket society had volunteers and nurses in their Plunket rooms. When things were getting too difficult for me, all I had to do was to call them, and they would come to pick me and my girls D and G up. If I had a sleepless night, there was a comfortable room and bed for me to catch my nine winks and they would take care of my girls.
It is 27 years ago when I used their services. I am most appreciative of the last service they rendered me. They came when I called them, and one of the ladies drove me to the doctor when they felt I was really sick. I threw up in her car, and she said it was OK. She waited for me at the doctor's. The doctor said my pregnancy wasn't too good and told me to go to the hospital. The plunket lady drove me to the hospital where I was admitted. The other ladies took care of D and G until the water engineer could come to pick them up. It was a Monday. I was discharged the next day.
Andrew was born that Friday. He died shortly after. The plunket ladies sent me a card and told me that I could always go back to their rooms. I didn't like to go back because there was always babies there and I couldn't bear to see babies. But my daughter G had bad allergies and I had to take her there to see Dr. Rowley. The nurses knew that I wasn't sleeping well, and told me to rest while they took care of Gabrielle. Then I went to Singapore and never thanked them properly.
In my latest book, The Playgroup Club, I wrote about the Plunket helping young mothers. http://annplaygroup.blogspot.co.nz/2016/11/the-play-group-club.html
http://annplaygroup.blogspot.co.nz/2016/11/the-play-group-club.html