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Eventful Years
It was a summer's day in February 1996. Jacqui had walked from her work to meet me for coffee at around five in the afternoon.
We sat chatting, overlooking the Yarra river, at Southgate.
"Well," she sighed. "You know, we've had some pretty eventful years you and I." I looked at her inquiringly. She was right. I agreed.
"While touring Europe we met and fell in love. That was in 1993.
Then in 1994 you emigrated to be with me in Melbourne. We married in May of that year. In 1995, last year, we had your illness to deal with," she stopped and looked me in the eyes, "And this year I'll be giving birth to our baby."
I looked at her, the words slowly making their way down the passages of my ears, into my brain. My brain slowly putting the message together, and finding the best response.
No response came. I checked with myself that indeed I had heard what Jacqui had said. I had. I checked that the sentence made sense. It did. But there was no response.
"What did you just say?" I asked for clarification.
"You heard me, Kev. We are going to have a baby."
I was response-less!
I was meant to be sterile from all the chemotherapy. I had been advised to put sperm on ice just before the chemotherapy had started back in May 1995, and I had. The doctors had told me I would be sterile. There was no way...
"You are pregnant? You are pregnant!"
My son, Brandon, was born in October 1996.
He is a bundle of joy. Right now, I can hear his mummy playing with him. I can hear him laughing. I can't wait to share with him the rest of my life...
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