I Had No Idea

 “He is too young to die”. She kept saying that to herself as if it could convince her that the 26-year-old man still had a chance. It was scorching hot outside; however, in that waiting room the temperature showed the contrary. The air conditioning and the silence minimized the presence of life in the environment. The blond man had aged dramatically since the month before – his face was pale and his eyes were constantly closed due to the heavy medication.

 It was hard to believe that a few weeks before they were having a lively conversation about horse races – and not even his passion for horses enabled him to respond to any human interaction. The engineer was in need of a rare blood transfusion and they hadn’t found the rightful donor till then. She wished she had donated her blood; as a matter of fact, she wouldn’t mind if the doctors emptied her veins if it guaranteed her husband’s recovery. The brunette woman hadn’t noticed, but she was aging too. In weeks, she’d lost five pounds even though her mother visited her in the hospital daily and forced her, in vain, to have a glass of milk with crackers.
 “How can I live without him?” She was aware that the news of a baby at home had freaked her husband out. They had been married for just a few months and they had a mortgage to pay. On the same day of the accident, her husband had gone to the bank to talk to the manager – he was thinking of getting a loan in order to remodel the house and furnish the baby’s bedroom. The negotiation went well, and he left the bank relieved. Some minutes later he was taken to the hospital; the careless driver at least called the ambulance.

 Suddenly, the doctor came in her direction. He crossed his arms and took a deep breath after telling the new widow the bad news. For a moment, the fragile pregnant woman was nothing but thankful: “I had no idea how happy I was” – she thought. The woman sighed and stood up; life wasn’t over. On the contrary, her journey was just about to start.

Pintura de Yvan Favre.