Rosemary's Blog

Today is April 27, 2014. Forty years ago today, April 27, 1974, Andrew Siler Smith was our first born son. That day is as clear in my mind today as it was forty years ago. Luther and I were both pharmacists working in Louisville, KY. Luther was the manager of the Walgreens in the Heyburn Building in downtown Louisville. I was a pharmacist working for SuperX. We were living in our first home at 1241 Beechwood Ave in New Albany, IN. Luther had just turned thirty and I was twenty-six. We were young. We were excited. We were nervous about having a child. We had two dogs, a poodle name Corey and an airedale named McKeever. Our world was about to change forever.

Andrew Siler Smith was born at 5:35 pm on April 27, 1974. He was not a pretty baby! He was jaundice and actually looked like a little old man when he was born. How we fell in love with that little old man at first sight! The birth of a child is truly a miracle. Luther and I have been blessed with three miracles in our lives; Drew, Jeremiah and Jordan. Our lives would not have been fulfilled without all of them.

While in the hospital I was told I could not name our son Andrew Siler Smith because of his initials! I always knew we would call him Drew so his initials would never be an issue. How wrong I was. I clearly remember the day Drew came home from elementary school and said, “Do you know what my inititals are?” Believe me, any monogram I had for Drew always had D.S.S.

Drew has let us know that he is with us today on his birthday. Last night, we decided to watch the movie Philomena. We had always wanted to watch it but knew the story and so far had avoided the pain we knew we would feel. The story broke our hearts. Here was an unwed mother whose son was taken from her in Ireland and sold to an American couple. She had kept her secret for 50 years. Philomena’s son had died years before she finally tracked him down in Washington, DC. Watching Judy Dench in this role at the point when she realized her son was dead actually made me sob. I felt the emotion she was feeling. I felt the emotion that the real Philomena felt at that pivotal moment. I had felt that loss.

At one point in the movie, Philomena was trying to meet with her son’s partner to get any information she could about her son. Suddenly a red Miata convertible drove up in the scene where Philomena had gone to his house to confront him. A red Miata only hours before Drew’s 40th birthday!

This afternoon, we left the farm in Lexington to go to the Lexington Cemetery to visit Drew and Jeremiah’s graves for Drew’s birthday. Just as we were turning from Iron Works Pike
onto Newtown Rd., another red Miata convertible was there at the four way stop!! Drew was letting us know he knew we were thinking of him on his special day – like we think of he and Jeremiah on each and every day.

We visited the cemetery and sat on their bench amid the beautiful yellow and red tupils and flowering trees that Taylor and Charlie Beach had planted in memory of the boys more than twenty years ago. It was a perfect day, sunny and 77 degrees. The flowers Michler Florist had delivered for both of our sons were beautiful. We sat and remembered. We remembered forty years ago. We remembered a baby then a boy then a man. We remembered a kind, compassionate, loving son who will never, ever be forgotten while I have breath in this body. I love you Drew.

Love,

Mom