11 Becoming a first-time father

As my wife  was taking rest at our home during the summer holidays, the problem was how to find a place to live when the college reopens in June. Wife and child of the staff member who graciously allowed me to stay in his house was to come back after reopening.  I was on the lookout for another young ‘father-to-be’ so that I can move into his house. Fortunately, a few F type quarters fell vacant meanwhile and I was lucky enough to get one allotted in my name. So, first time after an year, I had an official residence in the campus. It was very near the house we were staying and with our Staff nurse Mrs.Gowri Poduval’s house. After purchasing essential furniture, we moved in without wasting any more time.  

Elders in our family insisted that the delivery must be in our native place as they did not want to leave the most important event to this ‘boy’ who did not know anything(?). But transportation facility in our place was not good enough. Our Alappuzha Changanassery road was in fore sections with three ferries in between. These were at Pallathuruthy, Nedumudy and Kidangara. Each one will take  minimum half an hour to cross. To reach Alappuzha  two ferries had to be crossed  and to reach Changanassery only one ferry to be crossed. We thought Kottayam was a better choice as we can reach Kottayam by boat comfortably even if it takes more time. Kottayam was more familiar to my wife as she was working in Rubber Board for a few months before marriage. Moreover her cousin and husband (whose son married this girl after several years) were  staying  nearby and promised to help us. There was a small maternity hospital near the old Rajmahal theatre run by two senior gynaecologists Dr Annie Joseph and her friend. Even though the nursing home was not too posh as per the present standards, the doctors were very good and experienced and used to take care of the patients admitted there like two elderly mothers. We had her for a check-up during the holidays and they said we can come over on full term.

So, in the middle of Sept 1970, we started to Kottayam by Malabar express and directly went to the nursing home. The doctors  advised us to go home and come back as early as possible with essential things. WE reached Monkompu in a boat and returned to the hospital next day with a lady as helper and me on watch outside. Got her admitted and was waiting and waiting. As I had only 3-4 days leave as nothing was happening in these 4 days, I left for Calicut entrusting my father to take  care  outside. As her father and mother were teachers and my father was free and volunteered to help. After another four days, one central minister died and we got a day’s holiday. I rushed to Kottayam and reached the nursing home around 530AM. Then my father   had just come back after  praying in Thirunakkara  temple and was planning to go to the post office  to send a telegram tome. My wife had given birth to a baby girl almost in the middle of the night.

Labour pains started by the evening on 28^th but child was not being delivered even after several hours of labour. Caesarean sections were not  very common on those days (like  now), the gynaecologists  started heating up the forceps as they were thinking of using the forceps  to take the child out. As amniotic fluid was almost completely drained out, the child may get a brain injury, they could not wait any longer. Anyway, by the forceps were almost sterilized, our little princess came out without giving more trouble to herself and her mother. When I reached the nursing home in the early morning she was sleeping comfortably after her first feed and the customary course of honey and gold along with Ayurvedic medicine mixed together.  While sleeping, I remember even now, her upper lip was getting sucked inside as if she was  drying to suck  more  breast milk. In spite of the delay in delivery, everything was okay and we left the hospital on the 4^th day. And on the 28^th day, we named our micro-sized angel Mini.