My pregnancy bore shiny craving

I have always looked at pregnant women and marveled at how they manage to hold on to their sanity and still give you a warm smile at the end of the day. I personally would chew someone’s head if they dared utter a word when I am having one of those days. That is why I think they are strong, like the Amazon type. So every time l pass a pregnant lady I give them my best smile.

Now Esther is just special. She tells me not to get surprised because she has had worse stories and some of the things one does cannot be helped.

‘It’s a craving that you have to satisfy one way or the other. Even if it means you have to become a little devil,’ she tells me with a knowing nod. Then she starts her story.

I knew I was attracted to shiny things as soon as I hit my third month. I would go for window shopping and practically want to buy everything that was shiny and made of glass. My husband first thought that It was just a one time thing and let me have my way. So I would come home with four to five bags of shiny glass and arrange them in our bedroom. My husband would look at me funny and exclaim that he would not even try to understand what was going on.

My craving grew worse. One time I went to a party with my friends and had such a good time. When we were about to go home I excused my self and went to the little lady’s room. And there was the most magnificent thing ever, some marble bowls. They were so shiny and had all these colours that would change every time the lights reflected on them. I did not even think twice. I grabbed one and stashed it in my bag. Together with the stones contained therein! I still feel foolish about it. I reached home and placed it on my bed side table. They were so shiny and I felt so relaxed. I can swear that I had one of my most fulfilling nights ever.

The next morning I called my girlfriend and told her what I had done. She laughed at me and told me to keep it. Meanwhile. I swore never to touch anything shiny again. Everything went well for one month. Then my husband made the worst mistake ever! We went for dinner at a restaurant (I won’t mention the name) and had a great time. There I was again, in the little girls’ room. And there they stood, just looking at me and beckoning me to touch them, to take them; they were beautiful. They looked like precious stones from the 18th century. I tried to avoid them.

I went back to my seat and had dessert. I had small talk with my husband but all I could think about was ‘them’. I could hardly converse with him. He asked me something and all I could say was ‘shiny’. He locked at me weirdly and asked me if I was okay. I told him that everything was perfect. Before we went. I dashed back and packed everything. I had gone to a whole new level. I was stealing! And I couldn’t stop it!

At home I stashed them in my wardrobe where I knew my husband wouldn’t see them. I did not feel any guilt about it. You know the saying that goes ‘What you do in the darkness will be seen in the light…?* Let’s just say that would soon apply to me. Now it was a ready past my due date and I was taking everything easy, just waiting for my baby to pop out anytime soon.

So we went to a hotel near the hospital just incase and because my husband was always working at odd times he did not want anything going wrong. In three days, I had already gone to all the floors and picked all the bowls I could find, except one. I was saving it for last. This bowl was special; it was shaped like a lamp so I thought it best to have it last. That evening I had dinner as usual, and then proceeded to pick my prize.

I pocked it and was heading to my room when the contractions started! I was trying my best to reach my room when one of the attendants saw me and decided to help. All I could think of was my husband. I told her to take my cell from the bag and call him. She opened my bag and gaped. There was my little evil secret. She gave me a surprised look as she dialed my husband.

I was taken to the hospital and three hours later I got my baby boy. I woke up to find my husband and baby seated by my side. He smiled at me warmly and handed me my baby. And the little lamp was there, next to me. I turned pink. I could barely look at my husband. He grinned and told to me it was a special gift from the restaurant. ‘I gave back the ones you took and they gave me this as a token. I had to tell them it was a way of soothing you at night and that we were to return them as soon as the baby was delivered.’

He laughed at me. He still does. He tells me that as long as I stick to glass he’s all good. We ended up naming our boy after a shiny stone. I just hope I will never have a weird longing like this again. It was both scary and silly but when I look back. I do have my laughs.

END: PG22/28-29