Changing faces of motherhood!

“You are pregnant; you are on your third month.” The nurse’s voice teamed with these words pricked right through my heart.

“Please let this be a joke, this has to be a joke. I can’t be pregnant.” Words started to tread heavily in my head.

I was only 21 and still in college, still very young to become a mother. It wasn’t a dream for sure, although I would have given everything for it to be a dream. Unfortunately, it wasn’t!

I didn’t know how to react to it, had no idea what I was supposed to do. Was I supposed to cry, or laugh or jump into the river? I was a shocked, scared and confused mother-to-be. (FACE ONE)

I guess I didn’t realize it then, but motherhood started from the first time I heard I was pregnant. But I feared to bring the life inside me into this world. Of course I wasn’t ready. “But, what the heck? What’s meant to happen was bound to happen anyways!” (FACE TWO)

As I went on to my sixth month of motherhood I was still in college. My fashion statements become loose track pants and big T-shirts. Yes, I won’t deny it; I was trying to hide motherhood. I was shy, too shy of what people will find out (although I figured out later people had already known). (FACE THREE)

After my parents knew about it, I felt more secure. My whole life started to take a new meaning to motherhood. I started to smile at motherhood, started to love motherhood and finally felt comfortable with motherhood. (FACE FOUR)

The morning sickness seemed to last for ever, my stomach looked like it was going to burst open any moment, pigmentations had invaded my face and I can never forget the long minutes I took to stand up every time I sat down. The only clothes I could wear were the most hideous maternity dresses which made me feel very grandmother. The last few months of pregnancy was depressing, suffocating and annoying. (FACE FIVE)

The most important face of motherhood I missed was to feel the pain of giving birth (I am not talking about the face I saw on my friend while she was in labor). But I am talking about the pain full joy of motherhood. Due to some complications I had to have a cesarean and since it was an emergency one I felt no labor, no contraction and no pain. (FACE SIX)

Sagging tummy, the swelling boobs, the 30 extra kilos I had put on during pregnancy, all the morning sickness, my fashion statement of grandmother clothes, missing the wild night outs with friend and even having to leave college, everything seemed to fade away.None of these mattered to the joy I felt the moment I saw my son’s face.

All my miseries seemed to disappear when I put him on my lap and close to my heart. That was indeed a beautiful feeling! Somehow, I feel, the joy of having your first child will never be the same as the second, or third or fourth. My achievement was motherhood and my trophy was my son. (FACE SEVEN)

Then it was the crazy moments of learning to be a mother. Motherhood does come naturally but with that come a completely different life. From changing diapers to getting the right baby food to knitting the most hideous tiny sweaters to bathing them to putting them to sleep to watching them laugh to holding their little hands. Everything thus becomes an adventure. (FACE EIGHT)

Motherhood takes a completely different face as your child grows. There is never a moment that passes by when you have related something to you child, be it good or bad. Then there is this proud moment when your son can draw a perfect “A” and calls you “Ama.” There is no greater joy in knowing your child is learning and you are learning too. (FACE NINE)

Being a single mother is a completely different form of motherhood. Trying to be the father as well as the mother is indeed difficult. I often fear in being questioned by my son as to why he grew up in a single mother’s home. What will I say to him? But then yet again, there is a joy to being a single mother. From playing football with him to dressing up as a ‘ninja’ to fight him to teaching him how to pee, everything makes me a kid too. (FACE TEN)

Motherhood changes your life forever, it transforms you completely. It’s an experience of a life time which starts from the day you are pregnant to and goes on for ever. Motherhood itself is a new life!

“Discovering that with every child, your heart grows bigger and stronger - that there is no limit to how much or how many people you can love, even though at times you feel as though you could burst - you don't - you just love even more.” - Yasmin Le Bon