Billy's History 1967, 18 stitches

Billy’s Head, by Billy

August 1967

Sara was in charge of us, one time while Mom and Dad were away.  I and the younger kids, Charlie and Dianna, discovered a new game.  We took the cushions from the couch and put them on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, and then we proceeded to jump off the stairs onto the cushions.  We jumped from the third stair, and then the fourth and slowly, as our confidence increased kept adding stairs.  We eventually were jumping from the top of the stairs onto the cushions.  We were having a great deal of fun.

After we had been enjoying ourselves for sometime, Sara discovered our game and told us to quit jumping down the stairs—that it was dangerous.  I told her we would stop after one more jump.  I wanted to make this jump the best jump ever.  I jumped higher than I had before, and struck my head against the ceiling which came down about half way down the stairs.

I saw stars, like in the cartoons.  I had cracked my head pretty good.  I had to go into Logan to the hospital and was put back together with 18 stitches.  They wrapped my head in gauze, which made me look something like a mummy.  

I still have a dent in my head and a big scar under my scalp.  I was worried about going bald and the scar showing.  Fortunately I have not gone bald yet.  I also dented the roof.  There was a metal beam under the paint, and this showed for some time.  It has since been repaired, and the roof repainted; but the wave on my scalp is permanent.

the infamous stairs