Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: Once in a Blue Moon (01/06/11)
-
TITLE: Ma B�b� | Previous Challenge Entry
By Yvonne Blake
01/12/11 -
LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
SEND A PRIVATE COMMENT
ADD TO MY FAVORITES
Little Elisabeth relaxed from the breast and puckered her pink lips. Her eyelids flickered a bit before closing in sleep. I loved her curly eyelashes. I brushed my fingers over her fuzzy head that would someday be plaited into dozens of tiny braids. I put my finger in her palm, and she clutched it with her delicate fingers. Her fingernails looked like pearls.
I gave Elisabeth a kiss on her forehead and wrapped the white flannel around her shoulders. I tiptoed from the room and walked downstairs. The air was thick with humidity. I fanned my neck with a piece of cardboard torn from an empty box. Easing myself onto the front steps, I watched the neighbor children chasing each other through the cluttered street. I was one of them only a couple years ago, not a care in the world. Now I am a woman, caring for a child of my own.
I leaned my head back against the post. A ruckus of birds caught my attention. Some palmchats lifted from the trees—squawking and flocking. They seemed restless, circling and settling—only to fly off again. At least they could fly away. I felt trapped. Being a mother sure changed my life. I missed fluttering around with my friends.
Natalie, next door, waved. I nodded my head. Elisabeth would probably sleep for two or three hours. If we sat outside, I would be sure to hear her. I skipped up the steps for one more peek. She lay sprawled in the middle of the bed, her little fist in her mouth. I looked out the window to Natalie’s porch. I wouldn’t be very far away.
As I reached the bottom step, my foot slipped, and I grabbed the banister. A roaring, growling sound rumbled down the street. The floor lifted and dropped. An earthquake! I turned to go back up the stairs, but the walls and ceiling crumbled and cracked before my eyes. I ran for my life.
Outside, people screamed, dogs barked, buildings crashed. As I saw the roof of my house collapsed, I cried out, “Ma bébé! Ma bébé!” The ground heaved beneath me. I fell to my belly and lay sobbing—my tears mixing with the white dust. “Ma bébé!”
I don’t know how long I lay there. It didn’t matter. My baby was gone.
We crowded into rows of tents. There was little water and less food. The air stank. I felt sick. I curled my body against the world. My father brought fish and begged me to eat. I heard him praying to God for me and for my baby. “Pépère, my baby is dead.”
“Michelene, maybe it is; maybe not. God knows, and I will keep praying until I know.”
Days were spent searching and burying bodies. Nights were filled with sounds of wailing and mourning. A week passed by. I did not care. I did not think God cared either. Why should I pray to a God that let so many people die?
On the eighth day, my tent door flapped open. “Elisabeth is found! She is alive!”
I did not believe my father.
“Come! Come!” He tugged my arm. “You must come!”
I stumbled along after him as he pulled me toward the medic tent. People cheered and clapped as we passed by. I heard, “Grâce de Dieu! Grâce de Dieu!” Many followed along. I still did not believe. How could a newborn baby live a week, trapped beneath a fallen roof? A bundle of sheets was laid in my arms. It was my little Elisabeth. Tears flowed from my cheeks to hers. “Ma bébé, ma bébé,” I whispered.
“It is a gift from God!” My father praised God for answered prayer. “Everybody knew the baby was dead, except the Lord.”
"Tu es une jolie bébé." - "You are a pretty baby."
(Elizabeth Joassaint, a 15-day-old newborn, survived for a week beneath the rubble of her home in the devastating earthquake of January 12, 2010, in Haiti.)
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
Accept Jesus as Your Lord and Savior Right Now - CLICK HERE
JOIN US at FaithWriters for Free. Grow as a Writer and Spread the Gospel.
