Baby Arrives
Today was a memorable day, one of the most imp of days of my life, my wifes life. Today is when our first baby, Arjun was born. It has been a patient and impatient wait to see the glimpse of the Gods beautiful creation. Its like a fairly tale come true in so many ways…
9 months back, when i first came to know that I was going to be a father, honesty, I did break some sweat. But I blamed it on the hot climate :). The news took some time to sink, and to know that things have to change and improve for us to get a new life in this world.
Dhanashree, my wife, is an extremly patient, calm and collected person. While i was still struggling to pathom the situation, she exactly knew what she wanted. Its amazing that the nesting skills are so clear to the female of any species. We decided to improve our house, by have most suitable furniture designed as per our needs. There are no sharp edges, beds are huge to make sure a baby can sleep with us on it, the kitchen is well appointed with the most space saving stuff.
Just as we set our foot on this journey towards parenthood, things started going really bad in the industry. Worldwide turmoil, the layoffs in our companies and the changes in job profiles for both me and Dhanashree. Dhanu put up a brave face in adversity and took on herself to find a more satisfying job, where she would enjoy her work, there by making sure that the baby gets the best from his mother. We juggled with our time, worked hard, mostly unknowingly towards one single goal…. provide the best environment to the baby inside.
Dhanu got a good job, thanks to her hardwork even during the delicate initial few months. She was upfront about her pregnancy with the new company, but they were considerate enough to offer her with a decent hike anyway. But this new job meant that she had to travel longer. But having seen so many ups and downs by now, we knew how to face such situations and find a way out of it. We decided to let the car be with Dhanu throughout the day, with a driver to take her around. This worked quite well, as she could now focus more on her work. I fondly remember the days when i would stuff the car with a lot of food, which she would gobble down when caught in traffic jams.
Weekends were fun, with feeling the baby moves and thinking about what we would do when we become parents. We spent a lot of time looking for the name. But its really amazing that so many times, you finally pick what you liked at first sight itself. So while Arjun was an instant hit with both of us, we kept looking for a name which we like more… and there was none 🙂
Throughout the journey, Dhanu felt the pain, the anxiety, but never did she make it look obvious. Hat-off to you my love… !!!
All the memories of the hardwork, a lot more of my wifes than mine, went past my mind today. It had been a 9 month wait, and it was soon going to be all worth it.
We admitted Dhanu in the hospital yesterday, hoping against hope for a normal delivery. Reports increasingly supported a ceasorean delivery, and finally we decided to go ahead with it today morning.
The day was cloudy and dark, like most Mumbai Rain days. I had stepped out for some work, and when i was back, i found people already running around looking for me… and bang came the good news… “Mulaga zhala” (Marathi for “its a boy”). It was magical really to hear those words.
My mother came rushing wishing me … it took a few seconds for me to collect myself… it was one of the best moments of my life.
The we waited impatiently for the baby to come out. The baby came after a few minutes, and I was the first one to hold him. He was beautiful…thanks to the fact that most of his features are taken from him mother. He was already showing all kinds of emotions… mostly of a baby wanting to jump around and people restricting him… he made faces, he smiled, it was just miraculous.
Dhanu was still inside and we waited patiently for her to come. She came, all exhausted and eager to get the baby…
Very first time with mom
I read on the hospital wall… “A child gives birth to a mother” and the meaning just hit me. Dhanashree is now a mother, a sacred responsibility, which God chooses the time and person to give. While I was looking at both my loves, I got the best feeling of my life. It was then the meaning of a famous english phrase that struck me… “A child is the father of a man”…this seemingly meaningless play of words suddenly started to make too much sense !
Anand's thought book 
hey congrats daddy! really happy to hear this news
Minu anand
July 20, 2009