The women between estrogen and death got a major jolt at the end of the year. A 59-year-old British woman who was artificially impregnated gave birth to twins.
The woman, who does not wish to be identified, topped the record formerly held by Ruth Alice Kistler, Portland, Ore., who was 57 years and 129 days when she delivered.I do not think this is something that's going to catch fire as a trend. Women have long memories. I was 59 once. Actually, I was 59 for about four years. It wasn't that I enjoyed the age so much; I just couldn't bring myself to move on to 60. (I never liked birthdays ending in 0.)
There are some moments at age 59, however, that I remember. I would be in a hurry to get to the utility room and once I was there, I couldn't remember why I had come.
I developed a habit of efficiency where I would buy in bulk, hide half of it and then couldn't remember where I hid it.
There was a slowing-down process. I would nap each evening in a chair so I wouldn't be so tired when I went to bed. Changing TV channels with the remote was something I could delegate to someone else. I found myself sitting in a chair and waiting for someone to get to his feet. Then I'd say, "While you're up, could you get dinner?"
Babies used to bring out the warm, fuzzy feelings of nurturing in me. Now I find myself looking at the babies in diaper ads on TV and observing, "When a baby has `spoken lines' and weighs 82 pounds, he shouldn't have a liner in his pants."
Waiting to give birth until it's covered by Medicare isn't going to fly. I can feel it. It's too risky for us to put a baby down and not remember where we left it, or attend a high school graduation and not know where we are.
The Mystery Mother is getting a fair amount of flak from the medical community for her decision. Her response is, "Better a fit mother at 59 than an unfit one at 19." She could point out that women take heat for becoming an older mother and yet Frank Gifford became a father last year at 63 and the men in this country wanted to canonize him.
My feeling is based on the biological clock. It is set to expire for a reason. Plain and simple, the body runs out of energy.
You can fool your hormones, but you can't fool nature. She's a mother too, remember?