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AS I’m
banging away on my laptop, I’m torn between staying put
in my seat to finish this column and getting up to check
up on our newest family member, a handsome seven-pound
boy, is comfortably sleeping.
“So,
how’s the new mama and her baby?” a friend, who has two
kids of her own, had texted me.
“I’ve
developed biceps from carrying him, eyebags and a
light-headed feeling from lack of sleep,” I replied,
“But it’s nothing compared to seeing a baby fall asleep
feeling so secure in your arms.”
“Oh yes!
Nothing comes close to the joy they bring. I share your
joy.”
I feel
as if I’ve just joined the secret society of moms as
good-hearted people like my friend would come up to me
and ask, “So, how’s the baby?”
Yes,
I’ve become one of those proud mamas who keep photos of
their babies as wallpaper for their mobile phone; who’ll
grab every chance they could get to talk about how great
their kids are, even at the slightest hint of interest
people will show in their kids; or who would plainly
volunteer new information about their baby even when no
one is asking.
We’re
proud of our kids just because. Just because they bring
us hope, inspire us to be brave about the future, teach
us to trust our instincts, and move us to be tender and
loving again.
I will
never forget the experience of being at the delivery
room last week, wonderfully witnessing how he came out
into this world. It happened so quickly that I didn’t
even notice all the other bloody details. All I remember
is that his cry drowned even the bossa nova music
playing in the background. After nine months of being in
the womb, he seemed all eager to come out and discover
what kind of life this world would give him. For his
will and spirit to live, I just had to give him an
overwhelming standing ovation.
I may
not have delivered him—and I shall humbly have eternal
gratitude for the one who did so—but I feel that he has
already chosen us to be his parents even before he came
out into this world. I believe fate has brought us
together.
Welcome
to the world, son.
Getting
to know him
IT’S
been exactly a week since we got our boy. Amazingly like
clockwork, he’s developed a schedule for his three main
activities: sleeping, feeding, and soiled nappy time.
Our house has been very quiet the past week since we
made it a point to not open the TV and instead play soft
music. Our boy seems to like listening to Mozart, Bach
and Ella Fitzgerald as he falls gently with such music
after his morning bath.
But much
as we’re excited to fill him up with all the toys and
books that his titos and titas have
promised to give him, those things might have to be kept
away in the closet for a few more weeks. For the first
six months, our company will be most important to him.
Our
favorite Johnson&Johnson’s Mother and Baby Care handbook
(1990), which practically has photos for each baby care
step, encourages parents of newborn babies to take the
time to talk and smile to them. His personality is
starting to develop and every bit of stimulation, mostly
from you, will count. For the first six months, “Old
postcards, photographs, non-glass mirrors, rattles, the
clothes you’re wearing that he can touch, will all do
just as well.”
Baby’s
focus during the first few months can’t go beyond 25 cm.
(or 10 inches), so make it up-close and personal by
bringing your face close to baby’s when you talk to him.
Try to exaggerate your expressions and smiles. “It’s
this eye contact that helps your baby become a person,
and shows her what building a loving relationship is all
about.”
Nurturing rituals
AND
finally, as Deepak Chopra writes in Magical Beginnings,
Enchanted Lives (available at Powerbooks), caring for a
baby gives us a second shot at viewing the world.
“Seeing the universe through the eyes of your baby can
be a precious reminder that life is magical and
miraculous.”
He
advises taking time everyday to be in touch with
nature—your own garden or a nearby park will do—to keep
in touch with the five elements of nature (earth, air,
fire, water and space). He also suggests going through
some “life force-enhancing” activities to nurture our
newborn and our inner child as well. Try one or all of
these rituals:
1. Walk
barefoot on the earth for at least 10 minutes each day.
“Have your attention on your feet with the intention to
absorb nourishment from Mother Earth,” he writes.
2. Walk
along a natural body of water, visualizing the cool and
cleansing properties of water filling your being.
3. Enjoy
the light and warmth of the sun, acknowledging it as our
main source of energy and, therefore, “the source of all
life on earth.”
4. Go
stargazing at night and be one with the universe.
5. “Eat
locally grown, fresh and lovingly prepared fruits,
vegetables, and grains, which imbibe the life force of
all five elements.” |
