My wife's new born son

My wife was delivered of a baby boy of Friday afternoon at about 4.00 o'clock. It was really a bitter sweet experience as this was our first ever baby. Why bitter you may ask. Yea. I was helpless. I could only watch my beloved darling and sweetheart as she went through labour. It was contraction after contraction, the searing pain ripped through her, dilating her cervix, making it unbearable for our baby to stay longer in the womb. I had to forget all about work as it was simply impossible to concentrate on anything but the suffering my angel and best friend was going through.

When I heard his first cry, a tear or two flowed down my left cheek. I wanted to rush into the theatre to see him, not sure of his gender at the time. His cry was nothing like a new born's. His was deeper, like from a one year old. It was loud and strong. He was healthy and strong, with no illness or weaknesses.

The nurse brought him out before her mother, and went straight to our private ward with me trailing behind, wondering why she didn't simply hand me over my baby. I and our friend who was with us asked her if it was a boy or girl and she said it was a girl, before correcting her gaffe and telling us that it was actually a boy.

I looked at him and all I saw was a miniature me lying wrapped in cloth his mum bought long ago for the event. He looked his most vulnerable. He looked innocent, fragile and completely helpless as if I was the one to determine his survival. His eyes were closed tight as if he didn't want to see this wicked world he had just been born into. I picked him up from the bed the nurse had left him and his eyes opened momentarily and I knew immediately that I would love him until the day I die.

I remembered that his mother was still at the theatre so I left him to look for the nurse to inquire about the mother. I went back outside the theatre to continue to wait for her. After about 20 minutes, she emerged looking weak and exhausted supported by the shoulder of a nurse. All three of us walked to the ward where we joined the baby...

The midwives and nurses all testified to the strength of this woman I call my wife. For a first timer, she was outstanding. The fact that labour went on for more than 14 agonizing hours and she never cried, screamed or shouted as she went through the experience was a testimony of one's great resolve to overcome. Even the next day, the nurses kept talking about this experience which was completely  novel to them.