The
Catholic Weekly
Online

Sydney
16 November 2003

Home
Archive
Subscribe
Links
Contact

Pill ‘cop out’, says bishop

Dinner to aid homeless, orphaned kids in Iraq

Charity status doubt

Sisters elect new leaders

Manly dinner to honour cardinal’s 80th birthday

Souvenir Edition

Gold coin appeal

Pregnant pause: Discovering the person inside me

Daughters at beatification

‘Think, live peace ...’

Commissioning Mass for Vinnies

Editorial: A healthier way

Letters: Having writ, moves on

Conversation: Fr Paul Gardiner, postulator for the cause of Blessed Mary MacKillop - Lack of ‘miracle culture’ delays Mary’s sainthood

St Pat’s, a new beginning

Dedication Mass

Disability not a problem

Answering the phone and packing cards

‘Riches come together’ in joint liturgy degree

Mission theme in action

St Mel’s harmony project wins award

Founding principal returns for McAuley presentations

Pigment of imagination

Pregnant pause: Discovering the person inside me

Marilyn, one of our journalists, is almost five months’ pregnant with her first child. We will be following the progress of the fledgling Rodrigues family as Marilyn keeps a diary of her pregnancy for The Catholic Weekly. This is the first entry ...

It’s one thing to know that you are pregnant and notice you’re getting a bit chubby among other things - it’s quite another to finally see the little creature inside.

I have two pregnant girlfriends and I was lucky to escape the ‘all-day’ sickness that they suffered, but as a result I never felt pregnant for the first three months and I wasn’t particularly excited.

And apart from some early morning visits to the chapel to mull over my first reactions in prayer, and those last quiet moments before dropping off to sleep, I haven’t spent much time reflecting on the fact either.

That changes when I see the amazing image of the fully formed foetus busily twisting, stretching, kicking, waving and even pointing, at our 18-week ultrasound scan.

My husband, Peter, and I watch silently for a while with our mouths open. It’s too amazing for words. Then our eyes meet across the screen.

“See, there is someone in there,” he says.

This week we could both feel the baby moving for the first time as well. Both ‘firsts’ were elating.

Some of our friends and family want to know if it is a boy or a girl.

At first I did too, but now I’m so perfectly satisfied with what I do know. There’s another person inside me that has its own little life and occupations.

That’s quite enough for me to take in for now.

- Marilyn Rodrigues