When I was born, my mother had a book called “Your Child Year By Year” published by Parent’s Magazine in 1934. From birth to age two, it had places to write every week. From three to five, we were expected to write every month. After that until age 16 it was once a year.
My mother recorded my first encounter with a snake at the end of the three year old section of the Baby Book
RA (me), my mom and B (my baby sister)
“In November when we drove from Philadelphia. at election time, we stopped in New York and F [my father] visited someone at the Aquarium. RA & B & I looked at the fish, and turtles, penguins, seals and alligators for the first hour and then F took us back of the scenes. One of the men asked if RA (me) was afraid of a snake. I said I thought not, that she had never seen one. So he brought one out and let it play all around his arm & neck. The snake was about 3 in. in diameter and 7 or 8 feet long. It was beautifully colored, various shades of brown. After a bit, RA asked to hold it & I said she could. I put my arm along hers so that it wouldn’t squeeze hers too much. The snake wound around our arms & its tail got all knotted around her sash. Its head explored all over her dress, neck, hair, face etc. with its tongue sticking out rapidly all the time. RA petted it.
The man couldn’t get over it and kept remarking that he wished he had a photo of that. Figge [Dad] was just puffed up with pride. As we were leaving, I asked what kind of snake it was & when the man said boa constrictor, I almost collapsed!!! I phoned Mother when we got home & said “Guess what RA has been playing with” And she said “boa constrictor”. When I asked how she had guessed, she said she just tho/t of the worst thing she could’
My mother recorded my first encounter with a snake at the end of the three year old section of the Baby Book
RA (me), my mom and B (my baby sister)
“In November when we drove from Philadelphia. at election time, we stopped in New York and F [my father] visited someone at the Aquarium. RA & B & I looked at the fish, and turtles, penguins, seals and alligators for the first hour and then F took us back of the scenes. One of the men asked if RA (me) was afraid of a snake. I said I thought not, that she had never seen one. So he brought one out and let it play all around his arm & neck. The snake was about 3 in. in diameter and 7 or 8 feet long. It was beautifully colored, various shades of brown. After a bit, RA asked to hold it & I said she could. I put my arm along hers so that it wouldn’t squeeze hers too much. The snake wound around our arms & its tail got all knotted around her sash. Its head explored all over her dress, neck, hair, face etc. with its tongue sticking out rapidly all the time. RA petted it.
The man couldn’t get over it and kept remarking that he wished he had a photo of that. Figge [Dad] was just puffed up with pride. As we were leaving, I asked what kind of snake it was & when the man said boa constrictor, I almost collapsed!!! I phoned Mother when we got home & said “Guess what RA has been playing with” And she said “boa constrictor”. When I asked how she had guessed, she said she just tho/t of the worst thing she could’
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