Mother, Insulin and the Doctor

Matron Saumu arrived at her parents home at 10PM. She spent the night there, at around 9AM before she left, her mother summoned her. She brought up the topic Saumu had dreaded discussing all along.

“Mum I cant marry Salim.”

“You can not continue defying your mum, she saw the sun before you,” said her father

“Let her defy me, Baba Hassan she thinks she knows better!”

“Listen my daughter what are you afraid of, child bearing?” her father prodded

“No dad.”

"What is it then, you see… your mum and I had never met before she agreed to marry me. And here we are, getting old together. Its not that a big deal. In fact we requested for Salim’s photo…in case you have doubts of our choice,” he said opening his wallet.

“Here, have a look,” handing over a passport photo to her. “I hear you have a big position at Bora Sub County Hospital which is a double blessing. My daughter what you need now is a decent respected man of his status to match. He is a Muslim too.”

Silence rented the room, her two elder brothers and the family maid were present, which only meant that it could end up badly. For instance, her two brothers already looked drunk at 10 AM. She knew better than argue. She took the photo and left for her workplace.

Her mother pondered, recalling how many young men she had brought home in the name of friends. Potential suitors. “Just friends,” she had always said even when her motherly experienced eye could discern otherwise, she imagined how many abortions her daughter could have procured or could she on those long term methods of family planing or worse still could have removed her womb. She wondered what could have happened to the beautiful and cheerful only daughter of hers. She no longer confided in her, or did she think she was too old? Her two brothers though relatively illiterate had their families. The eldest with two wife’s and seven children, and a second born brother having two children with one wife. She, as the mother can not be wrong she thought. She meant well for her daughter.

Three months had passed since she broke up with her advocate boyfriend, she thought as she finished eating her noodles. The pressure has not waned though. What’s now different is that the external pressure had infected her soul. It emanated within herself. Is her mother right, she wondered as she slipped between the bed sheets that night.

The bed number 13 patient bid her farewell as she got discharged 3 days latter. Her uterus had been removed too, she informed Matron Saumu as she left.

Dr Juma continued to perform miracles at the hospital. One month later she went to consult him in his house in the hospital compound. She narrated her history of inability to conceive leaving the details of her partner. Dr Juma read the scan results. "This scan is normal," he said. Then he prescribed the same pills she had once swallowed at her boyfriend house before breaking up with him.

As she sat there that evening her eyes were on the masculine tall figure of Dr Juma. Tall, dark, broad shoulders, sturdy arms and prominent broad cheeks and chin. He had a shiny balding head full lips that exposed milk white teeth whenever he spoke to her. She stalked his dexterous fingers where the scalpel called home, now writing her prescription. She wanted to tell him that he needed a prescription for a sperm, a good sperm, but withheld the joke. When he finally finished writing and looked at her, she felt the woman in her awaken with lust. She picked the paper and was about to walk outside when she gathered courage and proposed; “I am inviting you to my house for supper, doctor.”

Part 4