Now children...

Sam and Lillias had been married for 10 years. They were a pleasant couple, reasonably well off. Sam's business was going well and Lillias quit her job as a schoolteacher to stay at home. She sat on the committee for various charities, went for flower arrangement classes, met up with her girlfriends for brunch. They lived, with their Filipino maid, Sarah, in a beautiful, spacious bungalow on Bangsar Hills.

Everything was just perfect. Except for:

"So, not thinking of having a kid ah?"

"How long have the two of you been married again?"

"Don't you long for the pitter patter of little feet?"

"I thought before I died I would see a grandchild...ahhh, such is my fate, my only son, some more..."

You get the picture.

It wasn't that they hadn't tried. And both fully expected the child to come along, sometime or other. And suddenly 10 years had passed...

One day Mrs John called. She ran a children's home and served with Lillias on various charitable committees.

"Lillias, I was wondering...we just received this baby boy and I thought of you."

Lillias was astounded. She and Sam had discussed adoption, the same way they had discussed IVF. Not seriously.

A few minutes later she was in her car, speeding towards the home in Petaling Jaya. And hour later, Sam's mobile went off:

"Yes honey, what is it?"

"I need you to come home now. You need to take care of the baby while I go out to get milk and diapers and all..."

Sam nearly fell over. What baby? When he got home, she thrust the squalling infant in his arms and scrambled off to get the necessaries. Sam looked at his new "son" and thought: "By God, this is the ugliest baby I've ever seen." A week later, he, like his wife, was utterly in love with the boy.

Eight months later, Mrs John was on the phone again: "Lillias, this time it's a baby girl..." She didn't get to finish her sentence. Lillias slammed down the phone thrust Robin into Sarah's arms and made like a Malaysian driver, speeding all the way to the Children's Home.

From no kids in 10 years of marriage, Sam and Lillias were now the proud parents of two. She found that two toddlers, Robin and Rebekkah, incredibly close in age, took up all her time and almost all her energy. Although she loved her children to death, she found herself increasingly exhausted. And surprisingly nauseous.

Her husband suggested vitamins. Sarah, being the more astute of the two, said: "Ma'am, you're pregnant."

"Oh rubbish," Lillias replied. The doctor, however, confirmed Sarah's diagnosis. She was indeed pregnant. Seven months later, Ephraim was born. And exactly nine months after that, little Antonia made her appearance.

The doctor insisted on tying her tubes.

Sounds crazy, doesn't it? But incredibly, while I changed the names, this is a true story.

It's dedicated to...well, you know who you are. Don't stress about it. It'll come when it comes. Pray for rain, then go build your dam.