The Black Phone

In this day and age, cell phones are so commonplace, almost everyone has one. In fact, their use is so widespread, that many people have them as their only form of telephone communication. However, it wasn't that long ago that families had but a single telephone line into their home, and before that, the lines coming in were party lines. I am sure there are some young people that do not even recall party lines, let alone the purpose of the letters on the phone dial, except for text messaging. Anyone remember PRospect6-1520? Well, I grew up in a home with 2 phones, only when the "black phone" rang, it meant that the party was over, at least for a few minutes anyway.

My father practiced medicine in an era that predated pagers, and certainly, it was long before the arrival of cell phones. Consequently, he had to rely on the good old-fashioned, rotary telephone. When his office staff arrived in the morning, they would begin answering the phone, and it was understood that there was a lunch hour sometime between noon and one o'clock. Ordinarily, that was a time when no one would pick up the phone at all. Naturally, when his afternoon office hours resumed,the staff was responsible for picking up the phone. There were times when you thought the phone would literally ring off the hook. I can only imagine what was happening in the office at the other end of the line. By five o'clock most of the medical "fires" had been put out, the help would go home, but that's when the second round of fireworks would begin.

The ring tone for the black phone was quite different from the private line, so it was easy to tell them apart. However, there were occasions when the office phone would ring, and none of us would jump to answer it regardless of its importance, or the 2 phones would ring at the same time. Then what would you do? Of course, answering the black phone generally took precedence. Even as youngsters, we became reasonably adept at answering the phone and taking a message. As my brothers and I grew older and our angelic voices changed, it became more difficult for the patients, because they immediately thought they were speaking to "the doctor". The practical experience that my sisters received made them good substitutes for the office help too, particularly during vacations and on weekends. On occasion, I even remember my mother "practicing" a little curb side medicine, unsolicited mind you, when my father wasn't immediately available.

Since Alexander Graham Bell invented the talking wires, the phone has been a mainstay that has kept people "connected". Batman had the bat phone, Maxwell Smart had his shoe phone, but at Estes Street, we had the black phone. It served as a constant reminder that some of life's problems couldn't wait for the calming voice of reason or the professional guidance we all would want when we were worried "sick" about a loved one or for the office to open in the morning. No, the black phone was a 24/7 gig. It was as dedicated to its line of work, as the "voice" was on the "receiving" end. When the black phone rang, we answered, "Dr. S's home", and boy weren't we all glad he was!