Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Conjoined Twins

A poignant, but heartening, story was carried in the media in Ireland recently. It concerned the conjoined twin boys who were born in University College Hospital, London, nearly two months ago. The babies’ parents have now returned to their home in Co. Cork, where they will have the care of University College Hospital, Cork, until they return to London later in the year for a separation operation to be undertaken on the boys in the Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Requesting privacy for the family from now on, on the part of the media, the babies’ mother said that her world was ‘turned upside down’ when she was told that she was carrying conjoined twins. She said: ‘I went through the pregnancy thinking it was awful, and why me.’ But, she continued,
‘the first day I held them in my arms, I knew I was chosen. They are a gift. … It was never expected they would live and do as well as they are – hence the name, “the little fighters”. … They fought their way to be here, please God they will come through the operation fighting. I have to remain positive. They fought through the birth and are getting stronger day by day. … Our wish is that two babies will survive [the operation] but it’s in God’s hands. So each day, each minute with them is precious.


In a live television interview, her husband – gazing down on the babies as they lay in their mother’s arms, surrounded by their two older little sisters – declared: ‘They are so handsome as they are. I am thrilled to bring them home and am very proud of my little boys.’ Their mother also commented that the babies were obviously caring for each other – although they slept throughout the interview they each had an arm around the other – and that she was aware that this had also been the case while they were still in her womb.
Please pray for this wonderful family.