A Blessing from God

A Blessing from God
Carolina Alonzo
Professor McCaughan
Keiser University
March 7, 2013 Five years ago I did not believe in love at first sight but, I became a believer once I saw him for the first time. When I met that special person, I just knew that there is nothing in this world that I wouldn’t do for him. Today we have a beautiful relationship and a bond that is impossible to break. His name is Vladimir and, his arrival in this world marked a before and after in my life, as well as in my family’s life.
For the most part, my family has been very united and we stuck together through thick and thin. But before Vladimir was born we were not getting along too much, in fact, there was a lot of arguing and we started to become distant from one another. I think the main reason for that was the fact that we were all becoming adults and we were making certain choices but at the same time it was hard to accept that our other siblings were growing up as well and were entitle to make their own choices too. For example, my sister Karina got married at age 18 and I got married at 19 but, that did not sit well with my mother. Therefore she did not attend our weddings. That’s how upset she was. I must say that, although I got married very young as well, I was not too thrill with my sister getting married either. In my eyes, she was still my little sister, a baby still, and she was not supposed to grow up so fast. At the end I supported my sister in her decision to get married. Now there was only one thing I advised her to do and that was to not get pregnant yet. I said to her: “Enjoy your marriage as much as you can and go to the doctor and, put yourself on birth control. A baby would not be a good thing for you right now. You guys are too young, don’t have secure jobs and, you need to go to college. Get yourselves good jobs, buy a house and, then think about children”. That was the plan, she actually agreed to it.
Time heals all wounds so my mom eventually got over the wedding. Then she then became jealous of my sister’s relationship with her mother in law but, that’s another story. About six months after the wedding, my sister delivered the news to us. She was expecting her first child. Most people would be thrilled to get this type of news, especially if the expecting couple is legally married, to comply with tradition, like my sister and her husband. The look in our faces was not a good one, particularly my look. I could not hide it. My mother and I were very worried about her future since we knew it was going to be very hard for her to continue her college education and that was going to affect her and her husband financially as well, when in the first place they were barely making ends meet. We knew that she was going to struggle and that was scary. I am the oldest of 5 children so I always had a sense of responsibility when it comes to my 4 siblings, specially my sister Karina. I am 4 years older than she is and I saw my mom suffer and struggle with all of us because she ended up divorcing my dad who did not help her financially or in any other way at all, making it really hard for my mother to provide everything that we needed. Therefore it was really important for me that she would finish her college career and not have to depend on any man just in case she ended up divorcing my brother in law. Of course my sister was very hurt and disappointed about our reaction because she did not get the support she was hoping for.
Eight months went by and my sister finally went into labor. At that point my relationship with my sister was not the best one. We were not seeing each other as often as we used to and to be honest I did not think too much about it but, I know my sister felt abandoned and she also felt like we did not care for her, so she relied a lot on her mother in law and her husband’s side of the family. She was very attached to them at that point, which I can understand and do not resent. I am actually very happy that she found their support at least and I truly have love for anybody that loves any member of my family. I started to feel curious as to when the baby was due so I paid her a visit. My sisters seem fine, just swollen and tired. I called my mother and asked her to stop by. We were having a great time and all of a sudden my sister’s water broke, we knew the baby was coming. Hours passed and she started getting contractions, little ones at the beginning but after some time they increased and increased, to the point where she could not take it anymore. That day was a scary one. I had never seen my sister in so much pain nor scream so loud. I panicked and started screaming as well, I was jumping up and down, threw myself on the floor, I was a mess. I just wanted her to not feel pain anymore. I was asked to leave the room but, my mom and Karina’s mother in law stayed with her. My poor sister was in labor for about 22 hours, without epidural until the last 2 hours.
When it was all over, we finally met my nephew, Vladimir. All I kept thinking was, wow! This is the best thing that could’ve happen to us. What was I thinking…I loved this little person from the first time I laid eyed on him and I knew he was going to love me as well, just thinking about him puts a smile on my face; I see no wrong in him. I feel the need to always protect him and be close to him. I want to be the best aunt I could be. During his first year, every single day I would go for my lunch break and spend that time with him while after work I would sing for him lullabies and put him to sleep. He got so used to my singing that whenever he cried and I was not there, my sister then would pick up the phone and call me so that I could sing for him and it was amazing. He would stop crying as soon as he heard my voice over the phone.
So many things have changed. I am definitely not as selfish as I once was. I now think about my sister and him before I think about myself. For example I don’t go shopping without buying something for them, and I spend more money on their gifts before I spend it on mine and the great thing is that I feel great when I do so. I also had a very busy social life and spent a lot of time with my friends but this days, I much rather hang out with Vladimir and Karina.
One day Vladimir stayed over my house, He was about 2 years old. While I was cleaning, he was watching cartoons. Then, all of a sudden, he got up, walked towards me, grabbed my hand and guided me to sit on the couch with him. He proceeded to lean on me, caressing my face with his little hands, he then said: “Tia, I love you”. That was the most sincere I love you I have ever heard. He was just learning how to talk and barely could do it but he said those worlds so clearly. My heart just melted and I told him I love him too, like I usually tell him every day. I gave him the biggest hug and stayed with him watching cartoons.
My nephew is a very affectionate, happy, and obedient little boy and because of him our lives are full of love, joy and laughter. I love my sister more than ever after this whole experience and I know her love for me increased as well. Vladimir has brought our family closer together and for this reason he is a blessing from God in our lives. We are very thankful for having him and our love for him is unconditional.