From Woman to a Mother

Her scream echoed into the corridors as she closed her eyes in relief, as the pain and pressure from the most intimate part between her legs subsided. She let her head fall back into the softness of the pillow as sweat and tears mottled her flushed face. In the distance, she heard the cry - the loud wail from deep within the lungs of a tot, and suddenly, the reason for relief transformed from the diminishing tenderness to the life of her infant. The bawl symbolising a healthy newborn, alive and well, and the celebratory utterances all around her, solidifying her thoughts, giving her the richest deliverance from any hurt or pain she endured. She was referred to as Mama and was assured that her tot was cared for, which provided her with solace that lulled her fatigued body into a deep slumber.

When she woke again, it was to the soft touch of a motherly woman who whispered to her that it was time to feed the little one. Worry etched into her mind as she reached out to support the babe. She recalled conversations with the infant's father where she had conveyed more than once the disconnect she felt with the fetus during most of the period of gestation. She had moaned and groaned about how she failed to perceive the urgency of a caregiver. She continued to worry as she moved the newborn to her bosom - already engorged to the point of pain, which she only experienced when the infant's mouth tried to reach for her nipple. With the midwife's nurturing, she guided the baby's head perfectly, allowing it to latch successfully, and she felt the pain of the mighty tugs from the little one's suckling as it took its fill.

Tears fell down her cheeks as she experienced the joy of feeding her child. The successful latch and the understanding that this baby needed her for its survival gave her much comfort. She was a mother, she acknowledged now. And somewhere deep within her, she felt a seed being placed - the seed of motherhood. In that moment, she knew this seed would take root, bloom and grow to wilt as she learns to be the mother to her child. This seed will not only grow to give her a mother's urgency, wisdom and knowledge, but it will continue to test her motherly instincts and will thoroughly. Its growth will strengthen and spurt with every milestone reached, with every mistake made, with every lesson learned and with every achievement earned by both the mother and child. She will realise, as did her mother and those before her, that the journey of motherhood may not be an easy one, but it may be the most gratifying.