cLOVErdale

Ah Cloverdale...I love this story :)

It was Augustish 1994. I had just left an endocrinologist appointment in tears. On my way out of the building I ducked into the ultra fancy lounge at Scripps research clinic to cry hard! I turned off the lights and plopped down on the sofa. A few minutes later Dr. Daily came in and sat beside me. This is what he said, “Jennifer I'm sorry that I've upset you. It’s my responsibility to make you aware of the potential realities of your disease. You WILL be able to have babies in the future. At this point your body is still recovering from the initial onset of diabetes, give it time…you’ll be a mommy someday”.
Then Dr. Daily told me the story of Cloverdale.

and it goes a little something like this….

Cloverdale loved Lilly. He was an officer in the German military. Lilly was an artist…painter. They lived a lovey dovey life in Berlin. In 1937 It was totally obvious that Hitler was nuckin futz so Cloverdale and Lilly left to “vacation” in Prague. Over the course of the next year they bounced from European city to European city evading the Nazi’s. In 1939 The swastika’s got a little too close for comfort so Cloverdale and Lilly snuck off to Japan where they could hide out and blend in...because 6ft tall Arians tend to get lost in an Asian crowd?

The whole nightmare that was Germany during WW2 was bad enough. Cloverdale, being a man of integrity naturally wanted to make tracks so that he wouldn’t be forced to carry out the atrocities on humanity that his military mates had to. But there was another reason he wanted to get the heck out of dodge; he didn’t want to toss his beloved Lilly into the gas chamber. Lilly was of the Jewish persuasion.

Cloverdale and Lilly settled in Sasebo, a small fishing village in south Japan. I have no idea what they did all day. I do know this, Lilly had an achy womb, she dreamt of having a baby. When she was 18 she was diagnosed with Diabetes. In those days there was an 85% mortality rate for diabetic mothers and most of the infants were still born. Insulin research had begun in Berlin during the late 1800’s. The experimentation with dogs and the use of dog pancreas continued over the next few decades and was finally patented in Romania in 1921.

Awwww Yeah! Lets give it up for Romania!

#1 favorite thing about Romania: Iana Matei: rescuer of human trafficking victims and sex slaves throughout Eastern Europe.

#2 Dracula and Transylvania.

#3 insulin patenting.

I have a top 10 but today we only do 3.

Back to the story…The insulin that Lilly used was crude but it got the job done. Lilly left Berlin with a 3 month supply. When that ran out Cloverdale had been able to get his hands on black market insulin made of Bovine and Swine pancreas…eeewww! Just FYI Premarin-a female hormone that lots of ladies take during menopause is made from pregnant mare urine. Why I know this? Because onetime I was in line behind this guy at CVS and he said, “I’m here to pick up my mom’s horse piss”. Nice.

Anyways Lilly was incredibly fortunate to be a lab rat for the experimental use of insulin injections. These shots were her only hope of having a child. Her supply was running out. Without it there would be no baby, worse than that Lilly wouldn't live a whole lot longer.

Cloverdale was scared. There was no living life without Lilly. Lilly was sad. She was never afraid to die, it was the idea of leaving Cloverdale that was devastating. It was double sad that she wouldn’t be able to give him a baby.

According to Dr. D, Cloverdale put on his thinking cap extra tight. He was a very intelligent man, he was highly educated as to all things Lilly, especially her illness. One night as he was filleting the catch of the day he noticed a swarm of flies on a pile of fish guts. It reminded him of the way the flies would feast on the left over cow and pig parts at the institute where Lilly’s insulin was made. Light bulb!!!!

I’m not gonna break down the science folks, the meat of this burger is that Cloverdale made it happen. If you go easy on the white rice the Japanese diet is low carb enough that in combination with the sushi solution she was able to control her blood sugars. Lilly was able to live and to create life.

In 1945 the proud mom and pop returned to Berlin to show off their beautiful baby girl and celebrate the ending of WW2. There was no more mention of  Cloverdale and Lilly's daughter in the story. I like to  imagine that they named her Ariel. She probably had a sweet set of gills and a mean backstroke, ya know on account of the fish-insulin.

“Jennifer, the desires of your heart are truer than the limitations of your body. You will be a mommy someday”. Oh Dr. George Daily…with all of my heart I thank you for the hope and encouragement you gave me that day! It’s stuck with me. Now whether my limitations are physical, mental, financial, gravitational, quantumly impossibile…whatever they are, it doesn’t matter because they’re not as true as the desires of my heart.