Parenthood is a partnership with God....we are working with the Creator of the Universe in shaping human character and determining destiny.
We are labourers together with God (1Corinthians 3:9)
I felt awkward (and in all likelihood looked funny) wearing the green hospital suit they provided but I couldn't care less. However, my focus was what's going on inside the other room.
A bit worried.
A bit scared.
A lot of excitement.
A lot of thanksgiving.
A lot of pondering.
A lot of wondering.
"Sir, you may come in", a nurse casually called my attention, "It's time for baby-out".
With my chest pounding and breath hanging, I entered the delivery room and saw my wife half-awake and groggy while being given the caesarean section. I tried my best not to catch a glimpse of the on-going operation otherwise the doctors would have to deal with another fainted patient. I can handle seeing reel blood but I was never cut out for the real ones. This obviously explains the awkwardness of wearing hospital suit meant for doctors and nurses only.
I held her shoulder and kissed her forehead.
This is it.
The doctor winked her eyes signaling me to prepare my camera.
And in one ultra careful swoosh of a moment, there was our fragile baby upside down full of milky fluids.
There were a few seconds of silence and his loud cries started.
Waaah.
Waaaah.
I still cannot understand how such a small mouth produce such a loud shrieking high-pitch voice.
(Later I read that the new-born's cry is, physically, meant to induce the baby's lungs to function and is, emotionally an expression of stress of being disturbed from his only known home for the past nine months – his mother's womb.)
While the nurses were busily cleaning, warming and weighing Zek, I gazed at him and realization struck me.
I am now a father and what a beautiful son has the Lord given me.
My eyes moistened in utter thanksgiving to our Lord for our wedding gift that we have waited for four seemingly-endless years.
We kept our faith and everything happened in His appointed time.
That day was the single most concrete testimony to His faithfulness to us, to look after the fulfillment of His plans for my wife and I.
The thought hasn't really sunk into me yet when I started busying myself shooting some photos of him while intently checking his condition.
"Two hands, five fingers on each hand. Two feet, five toes on each foot. Two ears, two eyes, one nose", I eagerly counted each facial features and body extremities as my wife reminded me during her pre-natal check-in at the hospital.
We are labourers together with God (1Corinthians 3:9)
I felt awkward (and in all likelihood looked funny) wearing the green hospital suit they provided but I couldn't care less. However, my focus was what's going on inside the other room.
A bit worried.
A bit scared.
A lot of excitement.
A lot of thanksgiving.
A lot of pondering.
A lot of wondering.
"Sir, you may come in", a nurse casually called my attention, "It's time for baby-out".
With my chest pounding and breath hanging, I entered the delivery room and saw my wife half-awake and groggy while being given the caesarean section. I tried my best not to catch a glimpse of the on-going operation otherwise the doctors would have to deal with another fainted patient. I can handle seeing reel blood but I was never cut out for the real ones. This obviously explains the awkwardness of wearing hospital suit meant for doctors and nurses only.
I held her shoulder and kissed her forehead.
This is it.
The doctor winked her eyes signaling me to prepare my camera.
And in one ultra careful swoosh of a moment, there was our fragile baby upside down full of milky fluids.
There were a few seconds of silence and his loud cries started.
Waaah.
Waaaah.
I still cannot understand how such a small mouth produce such a loud shrieking high-pitch voice.
(Later I read that the new-born's cry is, physically, meant to induce the baby's lungs to function and is, emotionally an expression of stress of being disturbed from his only known home for the past nine months – his mother's womb.)
While the nurses were busily cleaning, warming and weighing Zek, I gazed at him and realization struck me.
I am now a father and what a beautiful son has the Lord given me.
My eyes moistened in utter thanksgiving to our Lord for our wedding gift that we have waited for four seemingly-endless years.
We kept our faith and everything happened in His appointed time.
That day was the single most concrete testimony to His faithfulness to us, to look after the fulfillment of His plans for my wife and I.
The thought hasn't really sunk into me yet when I started busying myself shooting some photos of him while intently checking his condition.
"Two hands, five fingers on each hand. Two feet, five toes on each foot. Two ears, two eyes, one nose", I eagerly counted each facial features and body extremities as my wife reminded me during her pre-natal check-in at the hospital.
Everything was normal.
Our baby is a bouncing healthy boy.
One last photo with the new mother and baby Zek was carried away in his bassinet for follow-up checking and milk-feeding in the nursery room.
Today, January 24 was that day exactly 4 years ago.
The miraculous gift of life was repeated when our baby Maia was born January 5 last year.
The joy they have brought into our home is beyond description.
Our baby is a bouncing healthy boy.
One last photo with the new mother and baby Zek was carried away in his bassinet for follow-up checking and milk-feeding in the nursery room.
Today, January 24 was that day exactly 4 years ago.
The miraculous gift of life was repeated when our baby Maia was born January 5 last year.
The joy they have brought into our home is beyond description.
The closest adjective I can think of now is - Heaven on earth.
Prayer for Parenthood
Oh heavenly Father, make us a better parent.
Teach us to understand our children,
to listen patiently to what they have to say,
and to answer all their questions kindly.
Keep us from interrupting them or contradicting them.
Make us as courteous to them as we would have them to be to us.
Forbid that we should ever laugh when they displease us.
May we never punish them for our own selfish satisfaction or to show our power.
Let me not tempt them our children to lie or steal.
Ang guide us hour by hour that we may demonstrate by all we say and do that honety produces happiness.
Reduce, we pray, the meanness in us.
And when we are out of sorts, help us O Lord, to hold our tongue.
May we ever be mindful that our children are children and we should not expect of them the judgemt of adults.
Let us not rob them of the opportunity to wait on themselves and to make decisions.
Bless us with the bigness of heart to give them all their reasonable requests and the the courage to deny them privileges we know will do them harm.
And fit us, Oh Lord, to be loved and respected and imitated by my children.
Amen.
(This beautiful prayer came from a religious website. My wife printed it and we have been praying it ever since)
Prayer for Parenthood
Oh heavenly Father, make us a better parent.
Teach us to understand our children,
to listen patiently to what they have to say,
and to answer all their questions kindly.
Keep us from interrupting them or contradicting them.
Make us as courteous to them as we would have them to be to us.
Forbid that we should ever laugh when they displease us.
May we never punish them for our own selfish satisfaction or to show our power.
Let me not tempt them our children to lie or steal.
Ang guide us hour by hour that we may demonstrate by all we say and do that honety produces happiness.
Reduce, we pray, the meanness in us.
And when we are out of sorts, help us O Lord, to hold our tongue.
May we ever be mindful that our children are children and we should not expect of them the judgemt of adults.
Let us not rob them of the opportunity to wait on themselves and to make decisions.
Bless us with the bigness of heart to give them all their reasonable requests and the the courage to deny them privileges we know will do them harm.
And fit us, Oh Lord, to be loved and respected and imitated by my children.
Amen.
(This beautiful prayer came from a religious website. My wife printed it and we have been praying it ever since)
No comments:
Post a Comment