It is said that "Hope never dies": Before us lies a short tale of how, although Hope seemed to be lost, It can never, indeed, die!
Mikhail & Sasha had been told that they would never parent a child. When Sasha was 19, the year after she agreed to wed Mikhail, she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She barely survived the cancer, but in order to preserve her life, it had been necessary to remove almost every bit of her ovarian tissue. Both parties were devastated at first by the news, probably moreso Sasha, but Mikhail remained by her side through thick & thin, so as time went by, the wound began to heal, although the scar tissue would forever remain as a reminder. They had begun to abandon all hope of ever having a child of their own, when one day, Life gave them a Reminder of Who was really in charge!
After years of fitful depression, the couple had come to accept the fact, as they saw it, that Sasha would never carry a child of her own. Imagine their surprise when, one day, seemingly out of the blue, Sasha began to experience sickness in the mornings. Mikhail, at first, thought nothing of it, for since the doctor's diagnosis & the subsequent period of mourning, after which reality had slowly settled in, he had indeed abandoned all hope, though not his wife. Sasha, on the other hand, from the moment the pangs first set in, knew that something extraordinary was happening!
While, even after 6 months of continual proof that they were actually going to be parents, Mikhail still had trouble believing their good fortune, Sasha had already fully accepted this Gift from Life Itself. With a scant 3 months to go, things seemed to be going swimmingly for our hopeful parents. Regular visits to the doctor, who was as flabbergasted & honestly, still a bit skeptical, continued to show growth & a healthy baby girl. Yes, it was a baby girl that was expected, seemingly, beyond all hope!
As the expected delivery dated loomed ever nearer, Sasha & Mikhail's worst fears seemed to be coming true! The baby had turned & was in danger of presenting in the wrong position. Living in rural Russia, on the remote outskirts of St. Petersburg, they were several hours from the nearest hospital, but fortunately for them, there were several midwives in the area. One of these midwives was able to massage Sasha's extended abdomen & got the baby turned so that she would present correctly!
After the baby had been turned back, the delivery was at hand. When Anastasia emerged from the womb, the couple felt they couldn't have asked for a more beautiful child. Even better, she seemed as healthy as a horse. She didn't make much noise, as newborns usually do, but when when presented with her mother's swollen breasts, latched right on to a more than ready nipple. The fact that Anastasia had not cried so heartily when the cold air hit her face gave the doctor some cause for concern, though the midwife was not at all surprised.
Fast forward several months; all was well, or so it seemed! The happy couple had been parents for three months & all was progressing as it should: Anastasia was continuing to feed well & had been steadily putting on weight. Sasha was beginning to feel the extra strain on her own body, due to the baby's need for nourishment. Try as she might, though, Sasha soon reached a plateau where the baby seemed unable to garner the necessary nutrients from her mother's slowly weakening body. Anastasia gradually began to show signs of undernourishment. Blame it on the debilitating cold, blame it on her mother's own weakened system; signs of the young child's former health were slowly but surely fading.
In the end, even though it looked like one of those typical crib-deaths, it seemed that our little rising star had succumbed to a rare form of IDS. It was really no one's fault, though there was plenty of both guilt & blame that floated around for the next month or so. Mikhail & Sasha both felt the guilt the hardest, as is natural, although, rather than blaming the other, they harbored all or most of the blame for themselves. In time, they learned to forgive themselves & thus, each other; they returned to the complacency of married life & endeavored to be happy with what Fate had thrown them.
'Fate', however, was not done with Sasha & Mikhail yet. Though the Spirit of their first Child had not animated their Anastasia for much longer than a few months, She decided to return to this poor, hopeful family & thus, a bit more than a year later, Nadya, or 'Hope' was born anew! Nadya was truly a blessing to her parents & though they continued to live in the often cold & harsh climate of rural Russia, the Zhizn family, after all they had been through, finally knew the Truth of "Hope never dies"!
Namaste' & Blessed Be,
Sage Charles
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