Tiny humans who rule our hearts and lives
Elizabeth Stone, the author of ‘A Boy I Once Knew: What a Teacher Learnt from her Student’, was quoted as saying on the topic of having children that: “It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”
Strange as it might sound, I couldn’t agree more.
The day my son was born, three months ago, I was awash with a similar feeling. It was as if my body was suddenly too small a vessel to contain the growth spurt that my heart seemed to have undergone overnight, stuffed with a range of surreal and inexplicable emotions.
Love certainly had a majority stake.
Suffices to say that my husband has a similar memory of that momentous day. But it is the way in which this newbie tiny human has managed to disrupt the hearts and lives of the entire family in one shot that is fascinating to watch.
After his birth that took place in Fortis hospital in Mohali, I stayed at my parents’ house for the first two months in Chandigarh. Luckily, following an emergency Caesarean, I was on the quick path to recovery. Satisfied with my progress, the focus in the entire household shifted quickly to baby Vir, his milk timings, sleep schedule, stuffed animals to be bought, clothes and diapers to be changed and the constant race to find the best excuses for me to go about my business and hand him over.
And never has the word “burp” held more significance in our lives!
Before I knew it, daily routines were being altered to spare time for babysitting and tirelessly attempting to garner a smile from this new human doll. Netflix and other such entertainment mediums and subscriptions were lying unused and abandoned – an unprecedented feat in a household that would be in constant battles with the internet provider to improve speeds due to excessive internet consumption. Office hours were being inconspicuously cut short and evenings sitting around at home, staring at the baby became longer. The DSLR camera lying forgotten owing to its death by the smartphone had now been pulled out and put in manic use every day to get that perfect dimpled smile on film. The living room had never before witnessed such a long string of visitors consecutively in these two months.
My laptop lay forgotten at the back of my closet – the only place for it amid diapers, baby clothes and accessories and milk bottles. The hand itched to write but time too had become a slave of the tiny human and his needs.
I am now in Jalandhar with my parents-in-law where the saga continues. Dada comes home quick as a fox in the evenings to have deep, meaningful conversations with the grandson, who has now started to respond in baby talk. Dadi has cancelled all engagements for the month as she does not feel like leaving the room, let alone the house. While my husband has borne the brunt of the wait of our arrival finally in Kuwait, where we currently reside, he has pledged to adjust his office timings according to baby Vir and his schedule too to maximise father-son time.
As for me, I revel in the joy and fortune of large families that afford a healthy, diverse upbringing of children. While I too struggle like every first time mum to part with him even for a second, the advantage of the helping hand at a moment’s notice is not lost on me.
It truly takes a village as the saying goes. We will soon go back to being a family of three as NRIS but the village remains a constant backbone and the tiny human has the entire population on its toes!
THE WAY IN WHICH THIS NEWBIE TINY HUMAN HAS MANAGED TO DISRUPT THE HEARTS AND LIVES OF THE ENTIRE FAMILY IN ONE SHOT THAT IS FASCINATING TO WATCH