**EARNEST JOY**
“Mother, the only way left for us to have a child is IVF. Evelyn and Kenneth have made up their minds. You won’t talk us out of it. Best get used to the idea,” Emily said in one breath.
“IVF? So, I’ll have a grandchild from a test tube, then?” I could scarcely believe what my own daughter was telling me.
“Call it what you like, Mother. We start the procedures tomorrow. Tests are done. The doctors warned us—it will be long and uncertain. No guarantees. Please, be patient.” Emily sighed heavily.
I was at a loss for words. I ought to have comforted her, offered hope, helped—or at the very least, not stood in her way.
The conversation happened over the telephone. I understood—it was easier for Emily than speaking face to face, given how delicate the matter was.
Emily had first married her childhood sweetheart, Thomas. Their love seemed otherworldly—to her, at least. But at the wedding reception, after one too many, the groom found himself in the arms of the bridesmaid. Emily stumbled upon them in a dimly lit storage room.
Thomas, upon seeing his bride, tried to mumble excuses. The bridesmaid snatched up her things, draped a shawl over herself, and fled the scene, vanishing for the rest of the night.
Emily filed for divorce. My husband and I urged her not to act rashly.
“Emily, don’t be hasty. Men do foolish things when they’ve had a drink. That bridesmaid probably dragged him in there. Thomas is a fine young man—she fancied what wasn’t hers. Forgive him, love. You’ve your whole life ahead. You’ll regret it otherwise.”
“No, Mother, I won’t regret it. Thomas betrayed me, and it cuts deep. But I won’t start a marriage built on lies. Thank God it happened on our wedding day—less heartache in the long run.” She was adamant.
Thomas begged for forgiveness, swore it meant nothing—all in vain.
Months later, Emily discovered she was pregnant with his child. Without telling me, she ended the pregnancy. Had I known, I’d have begged her to reconsider.
Time passed. Kenneth—Thomas’s closest friend—proposed to Emily. He had loved her for years but never dared cross his friend. Now, the path was clear. Emily hesitated, burnt once, unwilling to trust again. For three years, she kept him at arm’s length. But Kenneth persisted.
“Kenneth, is your offer to marry me still open?” she finally asked.
“Of course, my love! Do you mean it?” He kissed her hand.
She nodded.
Kenneth threw a lavish wedding. Everyone was there—except Thomas, who sent a towering bouquet of lilies. Emily refused them, handing the flowers to a single friend instead.
Emily was twenty-eight, Kenneth thirty-three. Two years passed, and no children came.
“Emily, do you and Kenneth have a plan, or… is it just not happening?” I ventured carefully.
“It’s not happening, Mother. I’m starting to worry. Kenneth won’t speak of it—I think he blames himself. We’ll wait another year, then…” She looked away.
“Then what? Adoption?” I didn’t follow.
“Time will tell. We *will* have a child. One way or another.” She smiled mysteriously.
“God willing! Your father and I long for a grandchild.” I stroked her hair.
Two more years of trying, and Emily told me of their decision—IVF. I resisted fiercely.
“Emily, they say these children have no souls—that they’re sickly, unnatural, that they can’t have children of their own. Like machines!”
“Mother, it’s been practiced for nearly forty years. It’s growing worldwide. Many couples face infertility. ‘Test-tube’ children are born just like any others. But it’s grueling. You’ve no idea the toll it’s taken—on Kenneth, on me. Brace yourself—you’ll be grandparents soon. Maybe even twins. The first women who underwent IVF later had children naturally.” She was desperate to convince me.
But the process had begun. All I couldAnd as little Charlotte turned five, her laughter ringing through the garden, all those whispered doubts and struggles seemed to melt away like morning mist, leaving only the quiet, unshakable truth—that love, in whatever form it arrives, is always a miracle.
