It was 2:00 a.m. Owls were howling, and the chirping of the grasshoppers was heard everywhere. Everything seemed to be drowned in a deep slumber. Suddenly the room was echoed with a cry of baby Emma. She was crying and nobody seemed to be around. The room was filled with all the attractive and colorful toys. The walls were painted pink with pictures of cartoons on them. The rattle chimes were hanging all over the ceiling to make baby Emma laugh. But everything seemed to fail at this time. She was not attracted to any of the toys; the rattles were unable to make her happy and the pictures were somehow haunting her. She needed someone to hold her; she needed someone to console her; she needed her mother. Her cries started to become louder and louder and suddenly David opened his eyes with a blow and noticed something unusual.
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David and Cathy had their first daughter a week ago. Soon after giving birth, Cathy developed complications with her respiratory system and died a day after their daughter was born. It was a disastrous moment for David. He lost his beloved wife when he needed her the most. He was devastated and broken-hearted. He had lost all his dreams. He was left all alone, but the most excruciating factor was that he was left with a newborn daughter; a daughter who was living in her mother’s womb safely and sound for nine months was now out to face the cruel world. The worst thing was that she was not having her mother by her side.
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She was crying her lungs out. David rushed towards his daughter. A whole week without even a blink of an eye made him fast asleep. As soon as he realized that he was all alone to take care of Emma he ran fanatically towards her. Her face turned red and her lips were trembling due to continuous weeping. She had never cried like that before. David had no idea what to do with her at that time. For a whole week, he was surrounded by relatives. His mother was there and she was taking care of Emma but all of them had their own lives too. They all went away leaving an infant with a new father. Although his mother told him all the necessary things to handle an infant, he was still unaware. She brought all the baby items to him, consulted the pediatrician regarding the health of the baby. She got her first vaccination done and gave the card to David to keep all the records. She did her duty well and then left. She told him about all the possibilities the babies could cry for.
The crying became louder. David tried to remember all his mother told him. ‘Yes, maybe it’s her diaper that needs to be changed’, he murmured to himself. He checked the diaper; it appeared to be fine.
‘What can it be then’? He thought. ‘It can be a gastric issue’. He took her up in his arms. To his surprise, Emma stopped crying and fell asleep. He had no idea that it was his lap that she was missing. Tears started rolling down his cheeks. What misfortune had befallen upon Emma she didn’t know.
Weeks and weeks passed and David being a single father had gone through a lot of pains and struggles. He changed Emma’s diaper when she was crying for milk; he made her cold when she needed to be warm and warm when she needed to be cold. He was struggling with everything related to Emma. It was taking a lot of his efforts and struggles to fulfill his responsibility both as a mother and a father. He got leave from work to give full-time attention to Emma. He knew that he had full support behind him; he knew that his team was working and he wouldn’t face any problem related to work. So he had drawn all his attention towards Emma.
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Time was passing quickly. Emma was two months old. She was a cute baby with rosy cheeks and a bubbly appearance. Her smile was heavenly and made David forget all the frets of life. She was a little chubby with a pout face. Her cute small fingers were a ray of hope for David. Her tiny feet ensured the mutability of David’s life. She was an angel, an angel of life for David who was dead inside after he lost his beloved wife. Emma turned David inside out the same way her mother did.
Sitting by Emma’s crib, he often thought how careless he used to be. He used to skip his meals to play games; he was never a family-centered person neither was he a responsible son. Then he fell in love. Love taught him how to be a family man. He learned that a man is incomplete without a woman. He learned to love himself to cherish his love for his beloved. He stopped skipping meals and started to take care of the mealtimes of his family too. Then he got married. It was the most beautiful day of his life. Cathy was walking down the aisle. She was wearing a beautiful ivory dress. She was looking like a deity as pure as an angel. Seeing her walking down towards him was the moment of ultimate joy for him. He was happy like never before. But that happiness had gone too early and there he was spending his life all alone with a responsibility of a daughter.
In those two months, David became attached to Emma very much. He knew he had to start working again but the thought of leaving Emma alone was killing him. David had learned a lot in those two months. He learned to be patient and kind. He learned to hide his pain. He couldn’t mourn for his beloved wife as he had a bigger task ahead given to him by God. He learned to be a good father and most importantly he learned to be a mommy for Emma. The best mommy ever.
‘I was never meant to be like that, he thought one day. The sun was shining in the sky. Emma was playing in her crib. He had just fed her. Her diaper was changed and she was happy. But David was thoughtful.
‘What am I going to do with my work? How will I leave Emma all alone? Maybe I should hire a nanny. If only it never had happened. If only my daughter had never lost her mother. If only I never had lost you my love’, he thought on and on. Those thoughts came with the memories. The most excruciating memories, the memories that could never be erased from the book of life.