Baby Hila – Overcoming Pain With Praise

It is 10pm as I write this. I have just put Hila to sleep. Today he has slept early as normally he tends to fall asleep between 11pm and midnight. He has slept early because of the busy day that we have had together. He’s learning to walk, so that means I have help to walk him round the neighborhood. Before the afternoon walk, there was a photo shoot session; one among many that we have done since the day he was born. So far, he has hundreds of pictures. That is largely because, I am a professional photographer and I find so much joy in taking his pictures. I just can’t have enough of his pictures.

Hila is a source of joy to my wife and I. his name means ‘Praise’ in Hebrew. Indeed he has given us so much reason to praise and thank God for Him. Before we got him, we had lost two pregnancies. The first one at two months and the second one at five months. Despite faithfully attending pre-natal clinics, undergoing the medical tests and scans, doctors were unable to point out the causes of both miscarriages. That is still a puzzle to us.

Losing a pregnancy is not an easy thing, and it is even hard when you lose a second one. Besides being a trying moment for a marriage, people will talk negatively about it. They will have all manner of reasons as to the cause of the miscarriage. Others will suggest all manner of solutions to cure your “pregnancy problems.” We went through both miscarriages painfully but determined that one day, we’ll be telling a story of overcoming pain.

During Hila’s pregnancy, we visited the doctor countless times just to make sure that all was well. Seeing his first scan in the womb, with a speeding heartbeat, was incredible. We remembered the second pregnancy when the clinical officer effortlessly tried to locate the baby’s heartbeat and later the doctor telling us that something is wrong; “the baby is dead and the womb need to be cleaned” for a second time.

Listening to Hila’s kicks in the womb was magical. We prayed endlessly. Thankfully, God saw us through. My wife gave birth a week and a half after her final MBA exams. We crossed our fingers that the baby should not come earlier.

Today, about 10 months later, we are still excited about his birth. Hila is an everyday reminder to us that getting a child is a big miracle from God. As we celebrate our fifth marriage anniversary this December, Hila will have turned one year. This will be a praise-filled anniversary.

Sammi and Liz Nderitu.

1 Comment

  1. BLN Editorial on November 17, 2015 at 4:55 pm

    Nice read

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