Plans

This revelation also did not go down well and his instinctive reaction was disbelief.  I’m not sure whether he has ever believed me, but that reaction is something I have become used to as the years have passed.  But despite this setback, he stuck by me our relationship continued to develop.

The discovery that I was pregnant in early 1988 came as something of a shock to us both, but again, was met with positive reactions from our friends and most of the members of the family.  Once we had all adjusted to the idea, plans were made to welcome our baby into the world.  And Ryan and I decided to move our wedding forward by four months, to July.  During the early stages of planning, we thought that I would not be too obviously pregnant by that stage, as the baby was not due until the end of November.

Another thing that didn’t go quite to plan.  At the beginning of July, after I experienced terrible pains akin to strong contractions, my mother made an appointment for me to see a specialist in Harare.  I kept my appointment which was the day before our wedding and a friend accompanied me to the surgery.

The doctors were worried about my rapid weight gain, the signs of water retention, as well as the pain I had been experiencing.  The specialist checked the basics – blood, urine, weight and set things up for an ultrasonic scan.  What a surprise we got.  Not one baby, but two.  

At first I was not sure what I was seeing or maybe I just didn’t want to see it.  But once the babies were pointed out to me I couldn’t believe what was happening.  How do you tell a man, the day before your wedding, that you are expecting twins?