Unexpected

My sister, Amelia, holding my nephew, Jesus.

My family is a typical, very conservative, Mexican family so when my younger sister told my parents that she was pregnant their disappointment was to expect but what no one would have guess is that her unplanned pregnancy was about to save her life. My sister’s name is Amelia Bustamante. There’s only one year and a half years difference between us, that must be why people think that since our births were so close together that we keep a very close relationship but truth is that we’re two completely different worlds, which has made it extremely difficult for of to get along. Everyone in my family always said that someday I would be the first one in the family to simply run off with some guy and come home later with one or two little kids by my hand, maybe because I’m the eldest because honestly I never knew what gave them that impression. Anyway, I always wanted to proof them wrong, but I never wanted to be this way.


I remember the day I found out my sister was pregnant. Amelia and I shared a room, which would normally cause big fights between us, especially at night, because I would be on the phone with my boyfriend, David, and she would also be on the phone with hers, and either her or I would be really loud making the other one mad, and vice verse; privacy was also a big problem among us since you don’t get much of that when you share a room. The night I found out about my sister, it was a night just like any other; we were both on the phone talking to our significant others and fighting over T.V., she wanted to watch “Family Guy” and I wanted MTV. I recall telling David a few days before that I felt like something was wrong, I just didn’t exactly knew what it was; I just knew it was a uncomfortable feeling like anxiety, almost like if I knew something was about to happen. While I was on the phone with David, I sent him a text message, so my sister wouldn’t hear me talking about her. I told him “I think my sister is pregnant” and, of course, he asked me what would make me say something like that. I stood quite for a minute. It wasn’t something I could easily explain over the phone, I never actually hear Amelia say “I’m pregnant”, all I could over hear were half responses saying “…huh?”, “…I didn’t know if I should tell you…”, “…don’t worry about it…”, and “…I can do it on my own…”; my sister had told me a couple weeks before that Gerardo, her boyfriend at the time, and her were not together any more so it immediately hit me; she was pregnant.

I was in a bit of a shock for the rest of the night but I tried to remain calm hoping I had misunderstood everything. The next morning, my sister was her usual self, happy, loud, playful, and full of energy, did I mention loud? She didn’t look worry or stress or even sad, she seem just “fine” so I tried not to pay much attention to the matter after that, I got ready for work and took off. Probably most of us wish that taking concerns off our heads was as easy as simply wanting to but who are we lying to? Work took my mind off the subject every now and then but not enough to forget. When I got off from work I called my dad and asked him to pick me up, just before we pulled in our drive way the truth slapped us both, my dad and I, on the face; Gerardo and he’s parents were standing in front of our house. Inside of me, I felt the blood rush that one gets just before the scariest drop on a roller coaster, it’s a mix of emotions; I was scared, and happy, and useless. As my dad parked the car, he said to himself, “Ay, Amelia”, by the tone of his voice I could have sworn that he already knew what was coming. I guess parents do have a sixth sense, after all. I wanted to stop my dad from going in to any cost but avoiding the unavoidable was not the solution. At this point, my greatest concern was my dad’s health; he’s high blood pressure and the news of my sister’s pregnancy would sure worsen his situation. We, both, gathered the courage to get out of the car and approached the guesses that were now inside the house, invited in by my mom who also waited inside for us. After saying hi to everyone, I prompted my brothers to their rooms and locked myself on my own as well. The first few minutes when by on courtesies, and after a long minute of silence that seem more like 30, Gerando’s dad began addressing my dad “well, the reason why we are here tonight is to ask for yours and your wife’s permission to let your daughter marry our son…”, my dad remained as calm as possible and argued that they were to young, and that they should wait a bit but no objection would hold those words that he for so long feared. Suddenly, someone said “Amelia’s pregnant”, I felt dizzy and wanted everything to be over but the end would not come soon enough. My dad didn’t say a word. After the big news, the reunion was mostly a talk between moms, since my sister and her boyfriend wouldn’t say much. Once Gerardo and his parents left, it was time for my mom to talk to my sister. I heard them both cried, but tried my hardest not to hear their conversation; everyone when to sleep that night with a bitter-sweet taste on our mouths.

There was a baby coming whether we liked it or not, and so, I decided that it was not time for “I told you so” lectures. As soon as I could, I went to the store with my boyfriend I got a baby outfit. I convinced myself that was the best way to show my sister that I was happy with the news without having to actually talk to her about it. Two months when by and my parents grew happier and happier with the idea of a new baby in the house. When everything seem to be going just fine, something started feeling again but this time everyone was feeling the same way. My sister was 3 months pregnant but her tummy showed a five or even six months pregnancy. On her following appointment her doctor noticed the same thing and decided to send her to get some tests done. When the results came back, they showed she had a cyst cause by liquid that had been released by her left ovary over the period of a few years. At home, we always noticed she had a little belly but assumed it was due to lack of exercise and the way she walk, it never crossed our minds it could be something to worry about. Since the cyst had been growing inside of her for quite some time, its size represented a significant threaten to the baby and since she was pregnant it wasn’t possible to identify if it was cancerous or not. Doctors agreed on waiting a few more months before putting them both, my sister and the baby through a surgery so the baby would gain strength and have a greater chance at surviving. Three more months when by and the time came for surgery. Thank god, everything when as planned and doctors were able to extract a cyst the size of a gallon of milk. They also had to remove one of her ovaries since it was connected to cyst but other than that my sister recovered successfully and as well as the fetus.

Last year, on November 6th my sister gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby boy who they named Jesus Pinto-Bustamante. I like to think that everything happens for a reason; it might sound much of a cliché but if it weren’t have been for an unexpected pregnancy, neither my family nor my sister would have known of the existence of the cyst on her stomach; it could have kept growing and probably provoke more serious problems along the way. My sister and Gerardo are now married, and living on their own with their baby. Marriage is not easy, and raising a child is also a big package all on its own, but they’re both strong and in love so I can only hope they would manage to make it all work.