So my daughter informed me almost nine months ago. Although it sounded
like a riddle there was a simple explanation for her statement. She, along with
her husband’s support, had decided to be a surrogate mother for a couple who
was unable to have a child under normal circumstances.
Her siblings were thrilled with her news from the very beginning. My
husband didn’t take long to embrace the idea of the lovingkindness she was
doing for complete strangers. I was the last to come around. Pregnancies can be
fraught with danger and I was concerned about my daughter’s health, both
physical and emotional.
She assured me that she’d been carefully screened before even being
considered a candidate to surrogate. My daughter and her husband had to meet
with rabbis, doctors, and psychologists. They passed their interviews with
flying colors and she was due to give birth sometime between Purim and Pesach.
As the pregnancy progressed I began to appreciate her altruistic
motives. My prayers were full of pleas for her health, as well as the health of
the unborn baby. A baby who would not be my grandchild but with whom I felt a
connection of sorts.
As Purim ended my prayers began including supplications for a healthy
labor and delivery for my daughter. And then the seriousness of the corona
virus began to enter my consciousness. I yearned for the birth to be behind
her. At the same time I wanted the epidemic over before she needed to go to the
hospital.
No one stays pregnant forever. My daughter’s blood pressure shot up and
it was decided to induce labor. It was long and hard but at the end she
delivered a healthy baby boy. The baby’s father was at the hospital waiting to
meet his son. The mother, being at high risk for corona, was waiting at home.
As my daughter’s blood pressure stabilized she was discharged from the
hospital just twenty-four hours after giving birth. The baby met his mother the following day.
Now my daughter is recuperating at home with her husband and children, a
mere thirty-five-minute, easy drive away from me. If we were in normal times I
would be visiting her bringing a hug, kiss, and some sort of present. But we aren’t
in normal times. And so, like so many others, I need to make do with giving
virtual hugs and kisses via WhatsApp and zoom. Someday soon, I pray, I'll be
able to hug and kiss her in person. I pray we’ll all be able to embrace our
loved ones without fear or hesitation. I pray that day will come very quickly.
My novel, Growing With My Cousin, is available on line at http://www.feldheim.com/growing-with-my-cousin.html or https://www.amazon.com/Growing-Cousin-Ester-Katz-Silvers/dp/194635113X
1 comment:
A great mitzvah for sure.
My niece as twins, a boy and a girl, because someone was willing to lend a womb. In this case they did pay a lot of money, but nothing is more valuable but children. They had been married a very long time.
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