With Love from Karen by Marie Killilea

Author:Marie Killilea
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781504034975
Publisher: Open Road Media

Chapter Fifteen

Our life was very much like a patchwork quilt—innumerable tiny pieces, the edges touching and moving in all directions to make a colorful whole.

I noted in my day book:

Russ, Glo, Karen and Rory went to Playland Amusement Park. When they returned, Karen had little to say about the rides but did remark, “Mom Pom, I never saw so many babies and all beautiful!” She added wistfully, “Do you think God will ever send us another baby?”

Didn’t realize what fear Rory entertains for Karen because of her poor balance and occasional falls. It was revealed today when he confided to Marie that he was afraid for children when they rode bikes, climbed trees, and used roller skates. He said he wished they would all wear protective hats like Karen. He is intrepid about his own activities.

When Jimmy and A.M. returned to their work in New York, it was possible to keep up with only a small proportion of the letters as they came in, about three-fourths of which were from people not connected in any way with cerebral palsy. Of necessity, the balance pleading for help came first and it was impossible to reply even to all of them. Typical, was a letter from a grandmother:

Alicia’s mother and dad gave up and I’m afraid now it is too late. She’s such a sweet child and it is breaking my heart to know she’s facing such a bleak life. And there is so much promise.

Thank you for writing Karen, it has helped me so much. I have read it over and over. I am enclosing a picture of Alicia.…

I looked at the bright little face, the laughing eyes. We had been sent many pictures of lovely children, happy, alert, but body-bound. I had quite a collection of pictures of adults too, for whom public interest came too late.

Eleven years after the publication of Karen, we’re still receiving such letters.

The book was about to find two new audiences. 1) I received a letter from Mr. Donald G. Patterson, Chief, Division for the Blind, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. “We are happy to inform you that we are having Karen transcribed into Braille, and also Talking Book.…” 2) The book became required reading in many high schools, colleges and universities. This brought an avalanche of letters from students interested in going into the field of cerebral palsy as teachers, doctors, therapists. We answered as many of these as we could and as quickly as we could.

One day there came an envelope in which was a large sheet of paper and two one-dollar bills

FOR CEREBRAL PALSY

I’VE JUST MET “KAREN”

No name. No address. I had no way of saying “thank-you”—until now.

All the happy responses to the book were not in letter form. Our washing machine conked out. Two young men came to repair it (advanced senility was the diagnosis) and they did not finish the job until 1:00 a.m. I was working in the office and Gloria fixed them sandwiches and coffee. While they ate their midnight lunch she told them of our work in C.

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