October 18, 1956
West Virginia, East of the Appalachian Mountains
West Virginia, East of the Appalachian Mountains
A small farmhouse sits in the middle of an open field. Its outside is painted in a simple light blue, the trimming of the railing and porch banisters a white that compliments it so well. To the left of the door sat two rocking chairs, both brown, one with a worn-out pillow on the seat.
The cold night air slowly rocked them both. A wind chime on the porch twinkled and twirled, the few wind spinners in front of the yard spinning gently. Southern live oaks stood close by, Spanish moss blowing in the wind, threatening to fall off at any moment. Owls hoot and scream nearby, crickets chirps can be heard from all directions. A canopy of gold and white stars shimmered across the night sky, the moonlight casting its beam over the land. In the distance, thick, dense clouds could be seen, the threat of rain indefinite.
The door to the farmhouse creaked open, a dingy yellow light escaping out onto the porch. Agnodice stood in the doorway, pushing the screen door outwards. The door let out a long, rusty screech, the sound being amplified in the quiet of the night. She stepped out onto the porch, the cold night air stinging her nose and ears. Pulling the front door closed, she went down the short porch steps, letting the screen door slam against its frame.
She adjusted her scarf closer to her head, slowly making her way down the front porch steps. At the bottom, she looked around before a car to the left of the house, in the black of the night, flashed its headlights twice. Wasting no time, Agnodice quickly made her way over to the car, the wind picking up around her, pushing her dress and coat around her body.
She made her walk against the hard country dirt. She complained to herself, feeling tiny grains of sand and dirt find their way into her heels. Drops of water fall onto her cheeks and hair. Once settled in the backseat of the vehicle, the rain came pouring down as if it had been waiting for her to reach safety.
A man sat in the driver's seat. It was Warren, a man who Agnodice had helped once before. His sister had been pregnant and there had been no time to get to the hospital. Had Agnodice not been there… Warren didn’t care to think about that, he was just glad that his sister and nephew had made it out together. He now spent his nights helping Agnodice deliver babies to families in need.
A rhythmic pitter-patter danced on the metal roof of the car, drowning out any other noise. The radio was on low, too low for Agnodice to hear, even if it wasn’t raining. She was sure she heard a trumpet so maybe it was jazz. Warren must have thought this was still too loud because he turned the volume dial to the left, completely cutting the music off. He turned in the seat, his elbow hanging over the edge. He watched Agnodice pull her scarf from off her head and smooth out her hair.
“I made it just in time, huh?”
Warren nodded. “How’d it go? Are they okay?” There was stress in his voice, the same stress that he had every time Agnodice returned from a delivery and he wanted to know the results. “Please tell me they’re okay.”
“I won’t lie, Warren, it was touch and go for a while, keeping her blood pressure up was difficult and her babies weren't breathing at first but we did it.” Agnodice let out a chuckle when she heard Warren’s sigh of relief. “Don’t worry, I’m learning fast and getting better.”
“Babies?”
Agnodice smiled. “Yes, she had twins.”
“Twins! Did she know?”
Agnodice shook her head, her tight curls bouncing around her face. “We just thought her baby was bigger than most. Now, no more chatter, Warren! We still have one more house to get to and I don’t want to keep them waiting.”
“Yeah, yeah, I'm on it.” Warren put the car into drive and started down the sandy road. “Where to?”
“Into town, I’ll guide you from here. And turn the radio up please.”
Warren did as he was asked, turning the car volume up, slow calming jazz filling the small space of the car. Agnodice leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. The car rocked gently back and forth on the dented dirt road.
The dulled hits of rain on the roof, the warmth of the car, mixed with Warren’s humming, Agnodice could feel her eyelids grow heavy. With her adrenaline running prior, she was only now realizing how tired she had become. Her arms and legs were tight, her back felt like she had been pushing a boulder up a hill for hours on end. Helping women give birth almost all day, every day was beginning to take its toll on her body. But she couldn’t stop, not now.
She finally let her eyes close, going over the birthing steps in her head until she fell asleep.
The sun had completely risen, past its highest point when Agnodice finally woke up. The bright sunlight pushed its way through her thin curtains, the light landing on the half of her face that was exposed. Her exposed eye fluttered open and immediately squinted from the yellow light. Groaning, Agnodice slowly brings her arms to chest level. All her joints tensing and screaming in protest but she manages to push herself up, using one arm to hold herself up, her free hand to try and wipe the sleep from her eyes.
She looked down at her clothes. She still wore her birth outfit from the night before, only managing to take her shoes off before falling into bed. Reaching over to the nightstand, she picked up the small bell clock. The time read 2:43. She placed the clock back down with a harsh thud and flopped backward onto the bed, the pillows fluffing up around her.
“These late nights will be the end of me,” she said out loud, her voice was dry and a horse, probably from snoring. She had been told once that she snored like an old man who had known nothing but work his whole life. God knows her body felt like it.
While she lay in bed thinking over the events of the night before, there was a light knock on the door. It was her father, Sebastian. “Are you awake now?”
“Yes, daddy. I’m still dressed.”
Agnodice didn’t move as her father opened the door, a slow but familiar creak tagging along. Sebastian held a glass bottle of cola in one hand and a plate of hot food in the other. The smell of the food made Agnodice immediately sit up. She took the plate eagerly, looking down at the food. A pile of steamed cooked green beans, peppered and salted to perfection, butter melting on top, sat next to a load of mashed potatoes, small bits of potato chunks poking through the brown seasoned gravy. A thick slice of meat loaf separated the two sides, also covered with gravy. Mixed in the meat were bright green peppers and sweet onions, just how Agnodice liked it. And sitting in the last free space were two buttermilk biscuits topped with butter and honey.
Sebastian took a fork from his pocket and handed it over to Agnodice who wanted no time to start eating.
“Oh geez, who made this? She went all out!”
“Mrs. Edwards did. I wasn’t going to wake you up for about another hour or so but she brought it hot and I figured you wouldn’t want a cold meal.” The father took a seat in the armchair that sat across from his daughter's bed. “She also brought over a cake. I think she said it’s a silver cake. Something about a new recipe she’s trying. Smells delicious.”
“Well save me some please,” Agnodice swallowed her third helping of potatoes. “I know how you get around sweets. And I know how much you like Mrs. Edwards cooking. Speaking of, you should ask her out to the movies or something. I think you spend too much time inside all day, it’s bad for your health, you know.”
“First, Mrs. Edwards is a fine woman but I will not be doing that. She has her daughter and grandson to think about right now, I don’t think another mouth to feed is on her table.
Second, I get outside just enough-”
Agnodice cut him off. “One, she’s been a widow for some time now, I think it’s safe to talk to her. Two, Tending to the farm and the animals does not count. I’m talking about going into town and not just to get supplies or whatever. The farm can wait.”
“And so can your patients.”
The two stared at each other, Agnodice mouth filled with meatloaf and green beans.
“Truce?” Sebastian held out his pinky to Agnodice who locked it with hers.
“Truce.”
“So, any deliveries tonight?”
“No, just going to do some check-ups and then I can rest. I won’t have another delivery for at least two weeks.”
“That’s what I like to hear…” Sebastian took a deep breath. “I worry that you’re doing too much. You have so much going on and don’t have any time for yourself. You’re always looking tired, I wish I could do more to help.”
Agnodice simply smiled. “You worry too much, daddy. But thank you.”
“Oh, there’s something else.” Sebastian scratched at his chin, a thoughtful and worried look on his face. “I ran into Dr. Hill while in town today…he did not have favorable things to say.”
There was a risk that both of them hadn’t really realized was there when Agnodice started practicing childbirth in her town: misogyny. She got laughed at by every doctor in town when she went to apply. The only thing she could do was to be a midwife but the older women were already set in their ways. Ways that had proven to get the mothers and their children killed many times.
“He’s becoming suspicious, that he’s had less patients but he knows a lot of women in town are pregnant.”
“Well,” Agnodice swallowed a piece of biscuit. “I’ll just have to be more careful. I can’t stop now.”
“But-”
“Daddy, I told you that once I get enough women on my side, I’ll be able to convince the men to listen to me. I’m sure of it.”
Sebastian resigned himself. Amara had been right, she would give him headaches.
The two sat together for some time, Agnodice getting her father up to date with all the babies she had delivered, how well the mothers were doing, and the new techniques she learned.