Ana hadn’t been feeling too well for some time now. She had become pale and lethargic. Going to work felt like a chore these days, so she had taken a few days off. Akwasi had been concerned about her health and insisted they go to the hospital.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine,” she assured him. “I’m sure it’ll blow over in a matter of days.”
“It could be malaria, a flu, anything Ana. It’s better to go and check,” Akwasi reasoned.
Ana was tired of tests and hospitals. Frankly, she wasn’t even sure she’d be a pleasant patient if she had to go to the hospital.
‘I’m probably just tired from work AK; I’ll be fine!”
Reluctantly, Akwasi had left it until one night when Ana threw up incessantly and was too weak to get up from the bathroom floor.
“That’s it, Ana. I should have paid attention to my gut,” Akwasi said as he heaved her up from the floor. “We are going to the hospital now.”
“Now? It’s 10pm Akwasi!” Ana mumbled feebly.
Shaking his head, Akwasi helped her to get dressed and packed a small bag in case they had to stay overnight.
“What about my hair?”
“You’re thinking about your hair at this time??” Akwasi exclaimed, slightly annoyed at his wife’s stubbornness. “Your hair is just fine. Let’s go.”
Resigning to her husband’s demands, Ana leaned heavily against him as he helped her to the car. She got a sinking feeling that this was more than just stress….
*********
Naa checked her phone screen, concerned. Akwasi had texted her to tell her he and Ana were going to the hospital but that she and the girls should remember them in prayers. The girls had wanted to rush to the hospital, but Akwasi had asked them to hold on for now, as they wanted to hear what the doctor had to say first.
The girls had shared a group prayer and then kept texting on their WhatsApp page:
“Any updates?”
“Naa, have you heard anything yet?”
“What’s going on?”
A barrage of texts kept coming.
Trying to reassure them, Naa replied, “Girls, let’s all try and calm down for now. Hopefully we’re just overthinking things. The best we can do is to pray for her. I’ll let you know if Akwasi gives any further updates.”
“Alright,” the girls reluctantly agreed.
Putting her phone away and checking if Aiden and Eden were alright, Naa went to the guest room, got on her knees, turned on her favourite gospel playlist by Dunsin Oyekan, and began to blast in tongues…
………………..
Manza could barely sleep. She was worried about Ana and knew her sisters were too. Kyerewa and Betty had called her, frantic with worry. Trying to remain calm, Manza had just reechoed Naa’s words to keep praying.
“If by morning, we haven’t heard anything, we’re storming the hospital o,” Betty had stated, adamant.
Manza couldn’t resist agreeing. She felt helpless and wanted to at least be around and do something, and she knew the others were feeling the same way.
She thought of calling Kwaku but didn’t want to wake him up. Tossing and turning and adjusting her pillow countless times, Manza shot up when her phone rang. It was Naa.
“Hi girl, how are you?”
“I’ve been better Naa, what’s up?”
“Akwasi said Ana is okay. They’re just running a few more tests.”
“Okay, at least that’s some news,” Manza sighed, relieved.
“I know you’re all sick with worry.”
“You bet,” Manza responded, wiping sweat off her forehead.
Naa dialed Kyerewa and Betty’s numbers for a group call.
“Naa!” Kyerewa and Betty exclaimed together as they picked up the call simultaneously.
“Hi girls!”
“Any news?”
“Ana is okay. They’re just running a few more tests. Akwasi will keep us posted.”
“Great, great,” Kyerewa responded, relieved.
“Good,” Betty replied. “Now that we’ve been patient enough, let’s go to the hospital in the morning, agreed?”
“Yeahh!” the girls responded simultaneously. They had waited long enough and wanted to be there for Ana physically too. They had at least given her some time with Akwasi, so they wouldn’t intrude, but their patience had reached a limit.
“Sounds like a plan!” Manza said.
“Yep!”
“Cool, see you all in the morning, God willing!”
“See you!”
………………………….
Ana woke up after an hour of sleep. She opened her eyes to see the girls sitting around her. Akwasi had stepped out briefly to get her breakfast. Trying to sit up to greet the girls, they protested, “Lie down, Ana!”
The previous night was eventful. After Akwasi had gotten Ana to the hospital, they instantly attended to her, checking her vitals. Everything seemed fine, but the doctor wanted to be sure everything was okay.
“Dr. Edem, how soon will you finish the tests?” Akwasi had asked, concerned.
“Oh, we should be done by morning,” she had assured.
Thankfully, their lab was open 24/7, much to Akwasi’s relief.
“While we wait for the results, we’d still like to monitor Ana a bit. She looks too pale for my liking.”
Ana groaned, suppressing the urge to throw up. Sensing her discomfort, Dr. Edem grabbed a barf bag and placed it in Akwasi’s hands. Catching on, Akwasi opened it just when Ana threw up.
“I’m sorry,” Ana said apologetically afterwards.
“What are you apologizing for?” Dr. Edem smiled reassuringly. “That’s why we’re here.”
Akwasi helped Ana to lie back down.
“Aside the general tests we’re doing, I suggest we also do a pregnancy test,” Dr. Edem continued.
Ana laughed despite herself. “No please.”
“What do you mean no?” Akwasi asked, incredulously.
“Exactly that. I can’t go through that again.”
“Ana…please have a little faith,” Akwasi reasoned, as it hit him that his wife could be pregnant. He didn’t want to get his hopes up but couldn’t help it.
Seeing how Akwasi’s eyes were lighting up and not wanting to disappoint him, Ana reluctantly agreed, “Okay. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
After an hour, Dr. Edem returned, smiling.
“Just as I suspected Ana, you’re pregnant.”
“What?!” Ana exclaimed. Despite her weakness, she sat up, passing her hand briefly over her stomach. It couldn’t be!
Akwasi was silent, grinning from ear to ear and trying to fight back the tears. After all, as the popular saying goes, *b3ma nsu (men don’t cry…if only they knew!) Whispering a silent prayer of gratitude, he squeezed Ana’s hand lightly.
“How far along please?” he asked.
“2 months.”
Ana opened her mouth in shock.
“How?”
“God works in mysterious ways,” Dr. Edem winked.
Ana shook her head in disbelief. She was happy but scared at the same time. Was this finally it? Realizing she had zoned out, she came back to earth as Akwasi repeatedly mentioned her name.
“As I was saying,” Dr. Edem had continued, “Your blood level is low. You’ll need to take your iron more seriously. You need to be consistent with taking your folic acid. You’ll also need to eat very well Ana. It looks like this little one may do a number on your body, at least in the first trimester. And you need to take good care of yourself, please.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Akwasi assured.
“Good,” Dr. Edem smiled. “I would like to assign you to bed rest for a month Ana. Just to be sure you’re fully fine before you try to resume normal activities.”
“That’s good Doc,” Akwasi quickly responded before Ana could protest.
“Alright Doc, thank you,” Ana reluctantly agreed.
……………………………………………….
“Ana, Ana, can you hear us?!” the girls chorused, concerned.
“Mmmm?” Ana responded, breaking out of her flashback.
“I’m here, I’m here.”
“What did the doctor say?” Betty asked, impatient.
Pausing momentarily, Ana broke into a smile as the whole thing hit her.
“I’m pregnant!”
“Heyyyyyy!” the girls shouted, jumping up from their seats.
“Good news back-to-back!” Kyerewa exclaimed.
“Thank you, Jesus!”
“What God cannot dooooo….” Betty chimed, remembering the declaration that had become very popular…
“Does not existtttt,” the girls shouted together, not caring who heard them.
Ana burst into laughter, crying at the same time. She knew it wouldn’t be an easy journey, but she would hope. And hopefully, this time the story will be beautiful….
Are you as excited as the girls about Ana’s testimony?
No matter how long you’ve been waiting for that thing you’ve been trusting in God for, know that He’ll make all things beautiful in His time…hang in there (*hugs*)
Oh and by the way, the hashtags from last week are hilarious!! #KwakuZa, #ZanKu…eiii 😀 You guys are simply the best! Thanks for reading, and see you next week God willing!
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