Ben Squires
Family & Pets

A Christmas miracle saved my sister

Over60 community member, John O'Grady, share a special Christmas story from 65 years ago. He was only 10 years old at the time but it’s a Christmas that will always stay with him because a Christmas miracle saved his younger sister when all the odds were against her.

“Christmas day, 1950. It was about 2pm and I was gathered with my four siblings and parents at the end of the red clay runway that constituted the aerodrome at Ivanhoe in far west New South Wales. I was 10 and a half years old and we were awaiting the arrival of the Flying Doctor aeroplane from the Broken Hill base.

My younger sister, about 18 months my junior had one week earlier been misdiagnosed with a bellyache, not life threatening appendicitis. My parents had been advised to take her home and administer a 'good' dose of castor oil, apparently the panacea for everything at that time. Some hours later the appendix burst and the pain stopped.

All seemed to be well for a few days until the infection spread throughout her abdomen. Sometime before dawn it was obvious that she was very seriously ill and we all piled into the car and headed to town. I should mention we lived on a sheep station about a two hour drive from Ivanhoe.

The aeroplane appeared above the Mulga scrub and landed.

The aeroplane appeared above the Mulga scrub and landed. I had, and still have an absolute fascination with flying machines and had never before had the opportunity to see one on the ground. I forgot all about my sister's issues. It looked like an overgrown version of the pictures I had seen in books like the Tiger Moth.

My sister and our father were loaded into it and take-off followed, almost asphyxiating all on the ground with great quantities of red dust. We travelled once more out to the station, collected whatever gear necessary and headed of by road to Broken Hill. There had been heavy rain in the Darling River catchment area in the winter of that year and the resultant floodwaters had taken months to appear at Wilcannia, cutting the road. Local police arranged safe crossing for our car and occupants.

My sister had extensive surgery on that Christmas night and again a few weeks later. Another aeroplane was despatched to Adelaide to collect a quantity of the latest 'miracle' drug, sulphanilamide. It was created and used during World War II but had only recently completed required clinical trials to be certified fit to be released to the market. It was in short supply. It saved my sisters life.

After two months in Broken Hill hospital she was fit for discharge and is still alive and well. We returned to the station. There was a very dead Christmas tree with pine needles covering the gifts stacked below. We had a belated Christmas 1950, combining a great thanksgiving for the life of my little ‘mate’!”

Related links:

Nostalgic Christmas things not to miss

The reasons why sibling relationships are so special

Why family traditions are SO important

Tags:
family, community, lifestyle, christmas