Beautiful phase of Life!

Pregnancy

THE most beautiful phase of life! After giving birth to a baby boy, I feel getting pregnant and living this phase to the fullest was the most wonderful thing in life. And after Chinmay came into this world the phase got even better!

It was on 11^th Feb 2011, when I got to know that I was pregnant. I find the date itself magical 1102.2011. I expressed my happiness by literally jumping. Had not done such madness of jumping weirdly since childhood. Suddenly after sometime, I realised that there is a baby inside me and I was cautious. I went to my gynaec for the first ultrasound. She pointed out to a dot and said that’s your baby! She looked at us (me and my hubby Parag) for our excited and happy expressions. Parag had seen it carefully and I could hardly see anything on the screen but obviously I had pretended to see it. Just within seconds Parag could make out that I had not seen anything. I asked her to once again show it. It was a small dot, smaller than one rice grain. Once we were outside the clinic, we could remember the scene from ‘Friends’ serial where Rachael had the similar experience. We rushed to eat pastry to celebrate our happiness and from there on the journey of my baby had started.

Everytime we went for a check up, we had pastry after that. It was our way to celebrate the joy of seeing Chinmay grow inside me. My Gynaec gave me a welcome kit of Happy Mom, I felt so special. Actually was not expecting such thing in Germany. It is so convenient here in Germany that every gynaec consulting has an ultrasound and CTG facility and they do it themselves than otherwise in India.

I asked her what should I eat and what should I avoid? She said you could eat everything and anything that you like! WOW! Had always heard of list of things that pregnant women cannot eat and do. Have heard grandmothers saying that now you have to eat for two. Don’t bend, don’t lift up anything from the floor, don’t work at home and what not. Believe me, I did cook dinner a day before my delivery. I was doing Yoga everyday, going out for a walk, doing all those things of regular routine that I did everyday otherwise as well.

Geburtsvorbereitung Kurs i.e. Birth preparation course was fun. With a group of 10 pregnant women, they did prepare us for the delivery process and things we need to be well prepared before we went to the hospital for delivery. Of course how much ever you are prepared, the actual delivery takes the hell out of you. But it was more the fun, sharing experiences. They had asked us to write a letter to baby that is going to arrive in this world after few weeks. Felt it so special and overwhelmed when we received this hand written letter per post in 2 weeks after Chinmay came into this world. I had not at all expected this from a country like Germany. In every public place, I got so pampered by strange people on bus stops, railway stations, shopping malls. Should I call them strangers? I will not be fair on my part. Not to forget my German B2 course group who were so supportive throughout, whom I met everyday and who kept me happy throughout this phase.

First kicks of baby, first movements, hick ups! Short of words to express it. Every experience was so new; actually one needs to experience it to know what it is like!

Delivering a baby here in Germany was a fantastic experience. Parag was allowed to come with me in the labour room. Should I call it a labour room? I don’t think so! It was with bath tub, with CD player, LCD television, etc. I was given a choice of delivering the baby, as I was comfortable. In lukewarm water bath, or laying down, or just as I wanted it.

I would have missed Parag inside the delivery room if it were in India. Our own person to support when you are through labour pains is the utmost thing.

During the labour pains, I was asked to take a walk, go downstairs to cafeteria, watch telivision, etc. I kept on asking them that how many hours they will wait for normal delivery. Or else will they opt for caesarean? They kept on checking the condition of the baby after every 2 hours but were keen on normal delivery. I really do not know the pros and cons of caesarean, but have always heard that normal delivery is better.

Finally it was normal delivery. The moment I saw Chinmay, all my sorrow and pain was over. He was a sweet baby with eyes wide open and had started to explore the world. Parag took him in his arms in 5 mins itself!

After delivering the baby, the nurses trained me within 5 days, to change diapers, clothes, comb hair. And the midwife, who came home frequently after the discharge, taught me to bath the baby. So within a week’s time I was trained.

Everything that came my way after that was a new and learning experience all together. He is now 5 months! Very naughty, very sweet and cuddly. Ofcourse, for every mother her son or daughter it is most sweetest, cutest, adorable, naughty, handsome/beautiful, etc.etc.etc. And so it is for me as well. I think women who are too much career oriented, hobbies oriented, figure conscious should atleast once just go for it. It is totally worth it! I am sure every mom will agree to this :)

Perception.....!

One can afford not to be educated, but having less money is a crime. It is that span of your life when people try to pressurise you. Your relatives, well-wishers, friends, not all but most of them try to take advantage of the situation and treat you ill. Money can shut people’s mouth. Truth of today’s’ life! I don’t believe it is the only thing which rules the world but in most of cases yes. It is one of the most important things to exist in this world. An uneducated businessperson, who knows how to earn money, can have hundreds of highly educated professionals working for him. The perception of people towards this same uneducated person changes within no time.

Marriages are made in heaven! Someone said this, I don’t know who said though. But when it is an intercast marriage, couples have to go through hell before marriage and sometimes even after. Marriage when is an intercast or an inter religion, then our society doesn’t take it so well. It is fair enough to accept it. People who have been blaming their relatives children for doing an intercultural marriage, when their own children do an intercultural marriage, then the whole attitude towards it changes. Then they starve to present the relatives and well-wishers, how good the family of their son in law or daughter in law is. How good their culture is, how the boy or girl is well mannered, and ofcourse how stinky rich the family is. Views do change and suddenly very conservative family turns into broad minded.

After living in Pune for so many years, where Marathi is still prominent and majorly spoken. Though Pune has lot of cosmopolitian crowd coming in during last 5 years, still to be able to speak in Marathi in Pune was something I was proud about. After coming to Germany, forget Marathi, people are not even aware of existence of Hindi as a language. The only common language to communicate is German. Then I felt, where I was in the world of my own, where I use to feel, people from other states coming to Maharashtra should learn Marathi. But then I realised Germans are conservative about their language. If you have to live in Germany, you need to learn German. They would not speak in English (as the earlier generations have never learnt English throughout their education. This generation does speak in English.). I could feel Shiv sena and Nav Nirman Sena’s strategy here, though implemented in a non violent manner. We Indians are of such adjusting nature for various reasons may be. During my previous german class, I had lot of Muslim classmates in my batch. The first thing in the morning they did was, they used to greet each other as ‘Atsalam Valekum’. I felt in them the same conservative nature about their language. Though they came from different Muslim countries and spoke different languages, to greet, was in same manner. Eventually they started greeted me as well by the same gesture. This time I tried to be rigid and conservative too! I replied them with ‘Namaste’ and eventually I taught them to greet me by saying ‘Namaste’.

My view on languages keeps on changing. Sometimes rigid to speak only our language and sometimes lenient enough to adjust and speak foreign language.

After all it’s the perception! Perceptions can change the direction of your life. Perceptions are changed with the situations and experiences coming your way.