Ponder Her

Two weeks ago, my baby's temperature rose high and she's so hot that we had to give her paracetamol and we needed to keep wiping her with a wet washcloth followed by a dry one to prevent her temperature from rising any further. At the height of her fever, I sat her on our bed and gave her some toys. I propped myself on one elbow behind her, watching her and thinking.

I know I'm a weakling for some of the diseases that I have, and how I easily catch a cold or a cough, and feel shots of pain here and there. I was even diagnosed with a weak immune system before and weak blood vessels in my nose. I had nosebleeds almost every day while growing up. So, I was wondering if Elhaym's immune system is weak, too. In her one year and 4 months on earth, thrice she had high fever, the first one she even reached convulsion (yeah, I convulsed too when I was little, they say it's hereditary?). And then, she was hospitalized, where I vowed not to go back there. It's because I don't want her to be very sick again, and also because of the poor medical services that that particular hospital offered. It's such a bad experience, and maybe even traumatizing for Elhaym.

I noticed that Elhaym's hair has grown long, but not thick. She's a cute little curly-bottom. I still haven't given her a haircut yet since birth. I don't know when is the right time to set baby up for her first haircut. Some say, all her hair should be cut off so the new ones would be thicker, others say that even if I cut it, her natural hair type would still come out. Oh, i don't know! When should Elhaym have her first haircut? And there's this folklore that the first person to cut her hair should be intelligent, if not a genius, so baby would also be intelligent. Hm...

While, looking at the back of her head, stroking her shoulders and feeling for fever on her neck, I wished with all my heart that she would get well very soon! Suddenly, she stopped playing and she seemed to be staring ahead. I dare not disturb this moment by looking at her face, but she sure looked deep in thought from my point of view. I wonder what goes on inside the mind of a one year old... I wish she could turn around and say to me,"Mommy, did you know that...?"

It's fascinating to observe how Elhaym's vocabulary is expanding. The words taught her she could repeat almost with the same pronunciation and tone. This reminds me to be careful about what I say around her.

Right now, I thank God that she's OK. She loves to run around, turning our house upside down. She just has to open all cabinet doors and drawers, then take out the objects inside. Her doing so could give me a headache sometimes, but I prefer this to her being unwell.