Mother Miracle

Today as I sat down to write something for this page, I couldn’t decide what exactly I should talk about. I kept sifting through my old writings hoping to find something meaningful to convey. And I sure did stumble upon a few scraps.
But none stirred an emotion strong enough to put into words and share with my fellow beings.
And then my phone beeped and I received a text from one of my best friends. It was her husband, announcing the good news that they had been blessed with a beautiful baby girl.

I jumped with joy and tears of gratitude rolled down my eyes. My throat choked with emotions, I managed to type a few love smudged congratulations and a million kisses to baby Amrut, as the parents had decided to name her.

Why this particular news delighted me to the core, is truly a story to cherish. Because let’s be honest, babies although a gift of Creation itself, are being born every millisecond on this planet. Nothing special about it as such.
But this time it was, something eligible enough in order to shower profuse Thank Yous to Mother Divine.

This best friend that am talking about, she had been going through a rather difficult phase in her life. Having faced a violent divorce and then years of social insecurity, she stood her ground. Establishing her own clinic, she worked hard as a doctor and a responsible daughter, taking care of her parents. After a few years she got married again, it was looking as if life was taking a turn for good.
That was when Nature decided to play it’s hand and she lost her mother to a sudden heart attack, out of the blue. At that time my friend was a few weeks pregnant. She had only just delivered the good news to her mother. We were devasted. Due to the covid crisis I couldn’t even be there with her to console her through all this. On top of everything she was undergoing a difficult pregnancy. Throughout the nine months she kept thinking about her Mumma, recalling days gone by, missing her terribly and wearing her old salwar kameez in an attempt to feel closer to her. All we kept praying for was to keep the mumma and baby safe and healthy.
One her first ultrasound scan, they couldn’t detect the fetal heart sound. She was put to bed rest and medications and we got an albeit late but a healthy heartbeat. By the second trimester, she got a diagnosis of placenta previa, meaning that the slightest physical strain could have led to massive blood loss. I kept checking up on her, reminding her at the end of every phonecall to keep her legs up and not to walk around too much.
Somehow we managed to reach the last trimester and finally it was time to go for the second last ultrasound scan.

The past few months had passed comfortably without any sign of distress and we were quite sure it was all going well. And then the radiologist informed us about the nuchal cord, a single loose loop of umbilical cord around the baby’s neck. Although this raised a slight alarm in my mind but I assured everyone that sometimes it gets resolved of it’s own, we would put her on complete bed rest and re-scan after a few days. The next day her blood pressure rocketed, for the first time in her pregnancy. And I couldn’t keep it calm anymore. We ran another scan. The loop was still there around the baby’s neck and the amniotic fluid had reduced drastically. We grilled her obstetrician about the possible outcomes and decided on planning a C-section, although the family as usual wanted a normal vaginal delivery.
But we didn’t have as much time to wait.

All this seems like such an urgent emergency but amidst all the chaos one of the most unbelievable magical miracles was about to unfurl before our eyes. Because now we had to agree upon a date. Call this a coincidence but her husband’s birthday was just three days away.
What better gift could a father wish for! It sounds like a fairy tale but before they actually got married, whenever she asked him for a birthday gift he used to say, “Just bless me with a beautiful baby, and wouldn’t it be amazing if I shared my birthday with my kid!” I still cannot believe that this dream of his has come true. IT’S ALL SOME MAGICAL LOVE STORY!

And today morning, waiting with bated breath, I wished him a very happy birthday and kept rolling my beads with patience, waiting for my phone to blink any moment.
Although a healthy baby was all we were wishing for since the past nine months, and then having her arrive on the father’s birthday…our hearts were already full and spilling with happiness. That was when Devi Maa decided to shower Her love even more and it turned out to be a baby girl! It was as if the mother she had lost had returned to her, having taken shelter in her womb in turn…the circle of Love finally completed.
I clasped my hands in gratitude and thanked Maa again and again before deciding to pen this down. Not one but three miracles, such is the grace of Our Mother. She keeps giving even before Her children open their mouth to ask for her blessings.

I am running short of words now.
Maa…I love you Maa.
Only Bholenath can fathom the extent of Your Love! ❤️

Picture credit: Karan Nandaniya @painting.palette