Perhaps one of the happiest moments in every couple’s life is the coming of a new member in family. For other people a baby is a blessing, like an angel from above which fill up the empty space in their lives. A baby is expected to complete the holes in one’s hope, faith—little as it may seem, a baby has the power to make major changes—not only from the woman who bears the child, or the man beside the woman in labor, sometimes “the people around the environment of the baby are also affected with the change. ” (Cole)
However, how individuals accept that certain ‘change’ may differ on a specific context, for those who unexpected the birth of that earthling or the rise of that little seed, they may take it as a burden—financial paralysis to raise the child, emotional distress for reputational reasons, health dilemma, marital predicaments or immaturity in accepting the new fate—all of which connotes the fact that a ‘baby’ possess a different kind of finesse, something which will only be sought when experienced—but I believe that having a baby is moving to maturity.
“Children are one of God’s greatest gifts to any couple and needs to be cherished and appreciated” (Crawford)—perceivably one of the most common line heard when the topic about “giving birth” sprouts in any conversation. From being a couple to have another member would be hard—changing the daily activities in life, living with the wrath of time pressure, the agony of waking up in dawn to feed the baby—like a doctor in a hospital, on-call for patients to need one’s help in any time, nothing in specific for that matter.
In my own experience, I would say that it is never easy to have a baby, and I tell you, it changes your life like a jolt of lightning that you cannot escape and must face—consequences, challenges and the dilemmas. In my case, change does not begin when the baby is out, the change already started when I carried the child on my womb—the morning sickness, the need for water and food and the “fickle” needs which pregnant women feel—all these things also affect the person taking care of the bearer, the man must be available in all times, just in case I would need anything.
Having a baby is like bearing a delicate figurine inside one’s body, every move I make must be taken with care and safety—health is at risk, so what is to be eaten must be regulated. Moreover, the financial burden would be inevitable, what used to be the “trend”, the budget, at has been diverted to the child’s need. The changes are enormous that others are not able to overpower it. But all these burdens are oftentimes paid with something worth the pain and the suffering—seeing my baby smile takes away the frustrations of a hard day.
The innocence of the child, sometimes, is the key to bringing up reconciliation among couples, or families—family gatherings are inevitable when a baby comes. Parties here and there, almost everyone who is around the couple would want to see the baby. I used to have a lot of time for myself and for my family and friends, thus, because of the baby, everything needed to change. Perhaps not at all stake, but I wanted to change in accordance to parenthood—that is the biggest challenge.
I could not read all the books I wanted to read, or watch movies, since “the baby always seek my care and attention” (Thomas). With that, I must attend to the baby no matter what happens. Personally, I would say with conviction that a baby has changed my life in both efficient and hard way. There are several factors which I had to consider understanding why other people treat the change as a positive or negative one. As a parent I need to play like chemist and balance all the myriad elements that affect my child’s life—it’s like a responsibility that cripples down a person.
It is not easy and it is not fun. It is difficult and frustrating. But the only good thing cited on this life transformation is that, as time goes by, it does “get easier and becomes an accepted part of the daily routine. ” (Crawford)
Reference
Cole, J. , & Miller, M. (1999). The New Baby at Your House (1st ed. ). New York NY: HarperTrophy. Crawford, M. E. (2007). When Two Become Three: Nurturing Your Marriage After Baby Arrives. Michigan USA: Revell. Thomas, S. M. (2001). A Baby’s Coming to Your House! (E. Futran, Trans. ). Chicago IL: Albert Whitman & Company.