Maternal Love

It has been a week since I gave birth to my son Winston. Prior to that, I had always wondered what people meant by saying that "it's the most wonderful thing that could happen in your life". I literally could not imagine.

Now I do understand, although I lack the appropriate words to describe why. When I first held him in my arms after a very long labor, I marveled at how little he was, and also how dependent and helpless he was. While he did not exist in my life up until that moment, once he was in my arms, I felt that my life could not possibly be complete without him. Despite my wishes to raise him with discipline, I now understand why it is so easy for mothers to spoil their kids. Maternal love is supposedly the most selfless kind of love, and now I realize that in a way, while it is the purest kind of love, it is not necessarily selfless. - A baby is literally a vital part of a mother. Therefore, it is no wonder that she would do everything for her baby, including sacrificing herself if necessary. The genetic programming definitely works here, as a biologist friend commented when I told him my feelings about Winston.

Yes, indeed Winston is the most wonderful thing that has ever happened in my life. I realize that I will probably be an overprotective mother, as I have already started worrying about everything about him.

I also understand how my own mother felt about me when I was born. Without Winston, I don't think I could claim to truly appreciate how my mother has loved me and my sister. Perhaps one can only understand maternal love when she is on the giving end, as opposed to merely the receiving end.