Ma-ra-donna
It has been 2 weeks since the demise of arguably the greatest ever football player the world has ever seen. In that time, I have also welcomed my son, Ayokunnumi ‘Yaseer Arafah’ Gbade-Bello to the world.
Born a few hours before the football legend passed, here are the 3 times that he displayed dribbling skills, even without a ball. Enjoy!
1.) To begin with, my wife and I were united in our preference to start our family with a girl child. I even had several dreams in that regard and believed it was already predestined. So imagine our ecstasy when at 20 weeks, the scan results came and the consultant told us to expect a girl.
We subsequently gave ‘her’ a name, and began shopping for female baby clothes. At this point, further scans were considered routine so we didn’t bother interrogating the sex any longer. By 34 weeks however we got the rudest shock of our lives when after a slight complication, the doctors recommended another scan to carry out their assessment. It was during this particular scan that we were reliably informed that it was actually a boy and not a girl, implying that we prepared for the wrong sex for all of 3 months and 2 weeks!
2.) I had always envisioned and prepared for how my wife would go into labour and my follow-up reaction(s) thereon, based on movies and other educational materials that I had access to over time.
I had also managed to attend each antenatal sessions with my wife up to this point. How convenient therefore that he chose to arrive on a day of routine antenatal (the very first one that I missed as I got the house ready for his imminent arrival). Even my wife had no clue that she was already in the first stages of labor. It actually took the doctors to ascertain this situation during examination.
3.) We were not expecting him until the 1st week in December based on his EDD but he chose to arrive absolutely on his own terms and to top it off, his arrival not an hour later than 10:55pm on Tuesday, 24th of November ensured that his naming ceremony (usually 7 days after birth) conveniently fell on our 2nd Wedding Anniversary (Tuesday, 1st of December, 2020). How sweet!
To say that we have been stretched since he came to and through us, is to understate the obvious. I actually can’t recall when last I have been so physically and mentally drained, all from supporting my wife to care for him but guess what, every time I watch over him while he sleeps proves his worth in our lives and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Through it all, it is a pleasure to have you son. I am unable to hide my delight or quantify my feelings in finally getting to meet you. I love you immensely AJ (Ayo Junior)❤️
