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EPILOGUE
After a short time, the contractions restarted, and Julia was writhing in her bed.
“Can I be walking, Bill?” she asked. “Please!”
Dr Merrick nodded. Cautiously, Julia sat up; Mason held out his hands to give her
support.
“Is it all right, Doctor?” he asked.
“It’s the first part of labor,” Bill explained. “The contractions are necessary to get the
cervix of the uterus to open enough to let the baby out.”
“And this pain--”
“It’s manageable,” Julia said.
“It’s necessary, too. We’ve tried to relieve it a bit, and Julia can feel dizzy--”
“I do,” Julia agreed.
“When the cervical dilatation is complete, Julia will have to work hard, pushing the
baby out. Her conscious effort will be needed. That will be the hard part.”
Julia winced and got onto her feet. “Yeah, and now I’m just having fun.”
Mason liked her like this much more than a meek and subdued Julia he’d seen in the
ambulance.
“You are,” Bill said cheerfully. “Of course you are having fun, you can walk or squat
or jump on the ball – whatsoever; in that room over there, please, Mr Capwell...”
And for some time Mason and Julia were left to their own devices. Julia groaned and
swore and apologized; as to Mason, he couldn’t but wonder how good it felt to be a
part of the process rather than be driving crazy outside.
*
In half an hour or so Dr Merrick examined Julia and told her to return to the bed and
the sensors. The hard part was about to start now, the one Mason had feared most.
He gave a short prayer as he followed Julia.
With the labor going on, though, Mason had no chance to panic. All the participants,
including Julia, seemed to know very well what they were doing; Mason felt a part of
a well-tuned orchestra, as he was saying later.
On the doctor’s or the nurse’s instruction, Julia was pushing, and then she was
leaning back, gasping for breath. The nurse would look at the monitor often, telling
Julia when to push and when to have a rest. Mason was wiping his wife’s damp
brow; it seemed to him he was living through every moment of it with her, though of
course the pain was all hers.
“Come on, Julia,” the nurse said. “The baby’s ready. We need your help now.”
Dr Merrick looked at the screen. “Harder, Julia,” he commanded.
Julia pushed again, with a scream. And then suddenly she felt an unexpected ease.
The next thing they heard was the baby’s cry.
“That's it! That's it!” said Bill approvingly. “It's a beautiful baby girl, Julia!
Congratulations!”
“A baby girl?” Mason echoed.
Julia half-laughed, half-cried.
“Did you hear that?” Mason could not believe his ears, overwhelmed with emotion.
“It’s a girl!”
He was holding Julia tight, and she was clinging to him, laughing, “It’s our baby,
Mason, we have a daughter, it’s our daughter!!”
The baby kept complaining how cold it was outside, and how light, and how dry, and
how lonely it felt outside mummy’s body.
“Do you want to hold your daughter, Mr Capwell?” the nurse said with a smile.
Mason’s eyes grew big. “Can I?”
“Of course you can.”
With awe and immense tenderness he held out his arms to hold the baby. The tiny
wrinkled creature looked at him. “Oh – but she’s – beautiful,” he mastered and
showed her to Julia.
She’d have liked to hold the baby herself, but she was as happy to see Mason hold
her and connect with the baby.
“Please place her on Julia’s belly now,” Dr Merrick commanded, and Mason obeyed.
He then turned to him. “Thank you Doctor,” he said choking with tears.
Bill smiled, himself exhausted but quite happy. “Just look at them,” he said wiping
his face.
Julia was cooing with the baby, telling her something in a soft, sweet tone. Everyone
in the room was looking at them, smiling.
*
“How’s Julia?” an anxious CC rose to greet Mason.
Mason fell onto the bench. “Fine. Both are fine. Dad. We’ve got a daughter! You’ve
got a granddaughter!”
CC smiled and reached out to hug Mason. “Congratulations, son!”
“Thanks, dad.”
Mason leant back and rolled his eyes. “I did not want to go; they made me. I’ll go in
as soon as I can.”
“Shall I get you something?”
“Oh – yes, please. A glass of water. Thank you dad.”
CC walked away.
How good – how happy Mason was that Julia was safe now, and the baby was all
right! A daughter – a daughter was very good. Probably he wouldn’t have to worry
too much about how he’d love her as compared to how he loved Matt, and how the
two would get along. Daughter and son were too different to compare, and now he
knew for sure he’d love both to distraction.
From the bottom of his heart, Mason thanked God.
*
If Mary were not an angel, she’d be wiping her brow now, too.
Mason had been a bit of a handful, recently, she thought.
Of course it was her choice to become his guardian angel, and she never regretted it.
That was what he needed more than most. And her love for him was still so great, in
spite of her death, that she could not stay away from helping him out whenever she
could.
What she saw looking down now was very rewarding. A happy Mason thanking God –
Mary’d thought it’d never happen; he’d been so bitter after her death, she was afraid
he’d do something irreparable, either to himself or their baby or to his life on the
whole. With Heaven’s help, he survived.
Mary smiled tenderly and blew him a kiss. She knew he wouldn’t feel it – kisses of
the kind are not tangible even when living girls wave them to you; but Mason raised
his head and looked at the ceiling as if seeing through.
“Mary – thank you,” he whispered.
END
After a short time, the contractions restarted, and Julia was writhing in her bed.
“Can I be walking, Bill?” she asked. “Please!”
Dr Merrick nodded. Cautiously, Julia sat up; Mason held out his hands to give her
support.
“Is it all right, Doctor?” he asked.
“It’s the first part of labor,” Bill explained. “The contractions are necessary to get the
cervix of the uterus to open enough to let the baby out.”
“And this pain--”
“It’s manageable,” Julia said.
“It’s necessary, too. We’ve tried to relieve it a bit, and Julia can feel dizzy--”
“I do,” Julia agreed.
“When the cervical dilatation is complete, Julia will have to work hard, pushing the
baby out. Her conscious effort will be needed. That will be the hard part.”
Julia winced and got onto her feet. “Yeah, and now I’m just having fun.”
Mason liked her like this much more than a meek and subdued Julia he’d seen in the
ambulance.
“You are,” Bill said cheerfully. “Of course you are having fun, you can walk or squat
or jump on the ball – whatsoever; in that room over there, please, Mr Capwell...”
And for some time Mason and Julia were left to their own devices. Julia groaned and
swore and apologized; as to Mason, he couldn’t but wonder how good it felt to be a
part of the process rather than be driving crazy outside.
*
In half an hour or so Dr Merrick examined Julia and told her to return to the bed and
the sensors. The hard part was about to start now, the one Mason had feared most.
He gave a short prayer as he followed Julia.
With the labor going on, though, Mason had no chance to panic. All the participants,
including Julia, seemed to know very well what they were doing; Mason felt a part of
a well-tuned orchestra, as he was saying later.
On the doctor’s or the nurse’s instruction, Julia was pushing, and then she was
leaning back, gasping for breath. The nurse would look at the monitor often, telling
Julia when to push and when to have a rest. Mason was wiping his wife’s damp
brow; it seemed to him he was living through every moment of it with her, though of
course the pain was all hers.
“Come on, Julia,” the nurse said. “The baby’s ready. We need your help now.”
Dr Merrick looked at the screen. “Harder, Julia,” he commanded.
Julia pushed again, with a scream. And then suddenly she felt an unexpected ease.
The next thing they heard was the baby’s cry.
“That's it! That's it!” said Bill approvingly. “It's a beautiful baby girl, Julia!
Congratulations!”
“A baby girl?” Mason echoed.
Julia half-laughed, half-cried.
“Did you hear that?” Mason could not believe his ears, overwhelmed with emotion.
“It’s a girl!”
He was holding Julia tight, and she was clinging to him, laughing, “It’s our baby,
Mason, we have a daughter, it’s our daughter!!”
The baby kept complaining how cold it was outside, and how light, and how dry, and
how lonely it felt outside mummy’s body.
“Do you want to hold your daughter, Mr Capwell?” the nurse said with a smile.
Mason’s eyes grew big. “Can I?”
“Of course you can.”
With awe and immense tenderness he held out his arms to hold the baby. The tiny
wrinkled creature looked at him. “Oh – but she’s – beautiful,” he mastered and
showed her to Julia.
She’d have liked to hold the baby herself, but she was as happy to see Mason hold
her and connect with the baby.
“Please place her on Julia’s belly now,” Dr Merrick commanded, and Mason obeyed.
He then turned to him. “Thank you Doctor,” he said choking with tears.
Bill smiled, himself exhausted but quite happy. “Just look at them,” he said wiping
his face.
Julia was cooing with the baby, telling her something in a soft, sweet tone. Everyone
in the room was looking at them, smiling.
*
“How’s Julia?” an anxious CC rose to greet Mason.
Mason fell onto the bench. “Fine. Both are fine. Dad. We’ve got a daughter! You’ve
got a granddaughter!”
CC smiled and reached out to hug Mason. “Congratulations, son!”
“Thanks, dad.”
Mason leant back and rolled his eyes. “I did not want to go; they made me. I’ll go in
as soon as I can.”
“Shall I get you something?”
“Oh – yes, please. A glass of water. Thank you dad.”
CC walked away.
How good – how happy Mason was that Julia was safe now, and the baby was all
right! A daughter – a daughter was very good. Probably he wouldn’t have to worry
too much about how he’d love her as compared to how he loved Matt, and how the
two would get along. Daughter and son were too different to compare, and now he
knew for sure he’d love both to distraction.
From the bottom of his heart, Mason thanked God.
*
If Mary were not an angel, she’d be wiping her brow now, too.
Mason had been a bit of a handful, recently, she thought.
Of course it was her choice to become his guardian angel, and she never regretted it.
That was what he needed more than most. And her love for him was still so great, in
spite of her death, that she could not stay away from helping him out whenever she
could.
What she saw looking down now was very rewarding. A happy Mason thanking God –
Mary’d thought it’d never happen; he’d been so bitter after her death, she was afraid
he’d do something irreparable, either to himself or their baby or to his life on the
whole. With Heaven’s help, he survived.
Mary smiled tenderly and blew him a kiss. She knew he wouldn’t feel it – kisses of
the kind are not tangible even when living girls wave them to you; but Mason raised
his head and looked at the ceiling as if seeing through.
“Mary – thank you,” he whispered.
END
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