The Twins

I was 11 1/2 years old and my sister was 13 when our twin brother and sister were born. Brother Donnie had just had his 7th birthday at the time of their birth. While I had been helping with milking the cows in the evening, the day they were born was the first time I helped with the milking in the morning and continued to do so. Vivian was at the age where she was of tremendous help to Mother in taking care of the twins and helping with the housework, washing, cooking, etc. Though I wasn't nearly as much help as Vivian, I too got involved in taking care of the twins. It wasn't too unusual for Vivian to stay home from school on a Monday to help with the washing. One day when Vivian and I were discussing who was going to do the baby sitting, she said, "I'm getting tired of Mothering them". I in turn said, "I'm getting tired of Fathering them". With that comment, Vivian explained to me that the fathering had already been done; we both had to help with the mothering. It wasn't recognized in those days how important the "Fathering" was in raising a child.