Jake was a late entry into the family, born seven years after my brother Joe. Jake was born at home as I was. He didn’t weigh much at birth. There was some doubt about whether he would live. But mom was persistent and did everything in her power to nurture Jake to survival. She used an eye dropper to feed him, so he’d get some nourishment. He wasn’t strong enough to breast feed or feed from a bottle.
Because Jake was so much younger than the other kids, he grew up like an only child and got the full attention of his mother. He remained petite, never even reaching 5 ft in height. His siblings fawned over him. Esther had the primary responsibility for watching over him. When Esther married and left home, the baby-sitting fell to me.
As an adult, Jake enlisted in the army and became a ground observer. In those days, watching the clouds was the way to predict weather. Even now, Jake likes to point out the various types of clouds.
Once out of the service, Jake had a difficult time getting a job. He worked for the USPS for a while (in California) but was eventually put on leave because of erratic behavior. He had developed paranoid schizophrenia.
Jake has lived in assisted living facilities since then and now resides in group home not far from where I live. If he stays on his medication he does well. I visit him monthly, sometimes more often when he needs something, usually socks or pants.
