Allergies

My immigrant parents loved this country. But they didn't love its people. In their eyes people born in America were soft, lazy and didn't think very hard. Sure there were exceptions, but that was their starting point with anyone who was born here. For instance, after every big snowstorm or heat wave, they would laugh at the people wearing clothing that said, "I survived the so and so." What did Americans know about "survival?" Put them in a war, and they wouldn't last a week.

My mother, in particular, was dismissive. Americans were neurotic by nature in her opinion. They would get all kinds of psychosomatic illnesses. According to her, allergies were one of those things that only Americans got. "In Europe, no one had allergies," she said. "It's a craziness."

I didn't believe her about the allergy thing, but I got the drift.

This dismissiveness toward Americans was always worrisome to me. After all, I was American born. Was I soft, lazy and neurotic? There was always a tension about this point. The underlying current was no I wasn't, but I could easily fall. They were keeping watch on me so I wouldn't turn into one of those no-good, lazy Americans.

For instance, I always knew that if I ever developed an allergy, it would be taken as a sure sign that I was in free fall. The next thing you know, I'd be wearing a "I survived the blizzard of '79 t-shirt." I was thankful that I managed to avoid any sensitivity to pollen.

This week, though, I developed some sniffles. It's peak allergy season. And I smiled as I thought, "Oh my, what would my mother think if she were still alive?" It seemed odd though. How could I develop an allergy this late in my life? Maybe she was right. Maybe it was all in my head.

But today I had my answer. I woke up with a cold. My mom would be so happy to know that her boy isn't the allergy type.

Now of course, if I woke up with a cold or a fever or my leg somehow was broken in five places when I was a kid, my mom would kick my butt and make sure I went to school. Staying home from school was something no-good, lazy Americans did when they were sick. We were better than that.