Jing Mei is now in China and as she interacts with Chinese people, the conversation would obviously be in Chinese, but for readability, these conversations are presented in English.

Baby on Board

Jing Mei made the long trip to China with her father's body. Being able to emotionally handle the wake and burial was made possible only through the compassion of her distant relatives. Many who helped her through the difficult task of burying her mother just eight months ago, were beside her once again. The turn out was bigger for her father. Not only was he from a bigger family, he was also a highly respected doctor and wealthy man, well invested in business and real estate not just in the US, but in China as well. Numerous people she didn't even know, showed up to offer their prayers and show their respect.

After the burial, her grandfather's brother, now in his 80s, took her home with his family for the traditional clothes burning and to share a meal. She didn't feel like eating much, she was tired, exhausted really, but she did want to be with family. They told her lots of stories about her great grandparents, grandparents, parents and even a few of her as a child visiting them in China. She was grateful for the stories they shared. She would cherish them in heart at night when missing them would be the toughest.

It was nice to have family to share her grief and lift her spirits. Among her grandfather's brother's family were his grandson Chang Hai and his wife Rong Ning. That made them, what, second cousins? She didn't know and it didn't matter. They were about her age and a friendship as well as a family bond started to form.

Chang Hai and Rong Ning had a two year old daughter, Yin Shi, who touched Jing Mei's heart. Too young to understand what was going on, she was simply enchanted by the new relative who came from a far away place. She kept wanting to sit in her lap and be hugged, which warmly ministered to Jing Mei's grief ridden soul.

The long day over, she returned to her hotel. Travel weary, emotionally drained and physically spent, she felt nauseous and weak. Sleep was definitely in order. She crawled in bed, pulling the covers up tight, cocooning herself in the blankets. She slept soundly, not waking up until the maid accidently startled her late the next morning.

The restorative slumber rewarded her with a feeling of being part of the living world. She showered and got dressed. As she combed out her hair, she looked down at the vanity. It clearly expressed the state her world had been. All that lay there were her toothbrush and toothpaste. No make-up, no jewelry. Well, it was appropriate for mourning anyway, she thought. She fastened the black cloth that signified her state of grief onto her sleeve and went down to the hotel restaurant.

Hungry as she was, she was not tolerating the smells well. Her nauseous feeling returning, she ordered a bowl of clear broth and some plain rice and took it back up to her room. She curled back up in bed with her soup, rice and remote. She figured everything was catching up with her. She hadn't been able to properly mourn the loss of her mother due to her father's health concerns and now, she was actually grieving the loss of both her parents.

Life proceeded in much the same fashion for a week. She was getting sufficient rest, yet still suffering bouts of nausea daily. It seemed to be getting worse, extending further into the day and reoccurring in the evening. No fever, no headaches, no dizziness, she ruled out quite a bit. Could she possibly be? She did have the IUI procedure early in November. With the downturn in her father's health around Thanksgiving, she hadn't thought anything more about it until now. She hadn't had a period since that IUI come to think of it. Maybe she was pregnant. Too weak and nauseous to do anything more, she clicked the TV off and laid back down for another nap.

That afternoon she heard a knock at the door. Thinking it was the maid and not wanting to get up, lest she throw up, she called out "come on in". No one entered. Instead, there was another knock. She forced herself out of bed and upright. Opening the door revealed Rong Ning and Yin Shi. They came with a basket of homemade food. A wonderful thought, if not for her stomach churning in revolt.

"Jing Mei, you look very pale. Are you sick?"

"I think I'm pregnant. Morning sickness has definitely set in." And with that, she was in the bathroom demonstrating just how much morning sickness had set in.

Rong Ning was very concerned given her paleness, lack of engagement with the world outside her hotel room and the lateness of the hour of the morning sickness. "I'm taking you to my doctor right now" she insisted.

Jing Mei made no argument. She knew she needed to be seen by a doctor, she just didn't have the energy to find and go see one on her own. She was grateful for Rong Ning showing up and taking care of her.

Driving to the doctor's office, Rong Ning asked "you don't have a husband do you?"

Leaning back in her seat, eyes closed to ward off further morning sickness, she managed a weak "No."

"I'll tell the doctor your husband is in America. He's tied up with his work and couldn't make the trip." Rong Ning offered. She did not want to bring disgrace or dishonor to Jing Mei. In her weakened and nauseous state, Jing Mei made no attempt to disagree.

The doctor examined her and determined that she was indeed pregnant and calculated a due date of September 5. She was also severely dehydrated and undernourished for her state of pregnancy. A trip to the hospital was in order. In the hospital she was given IV fluids with nutritional supplements and monitored for her ability, or lack there of, to keep food down. Until she could keep enough food down to properly nourish the baby as well as herself, she'd remain there.

Rong Ning would visit her daily, sometimes by herself, sometimes with Chang Hai. She was turning out to be a wonderful friend. When Jing Mei was finally discharged three weeks later, Rong Ning and Chang Hai took her to their home. She would share a room with Yin Shi and they would watch and make sure her morning sickness stayed under control, that she was getting enough rest and enough to eat.

Unpacking, Jing Mei found her cell phone. She tried powering it up, but it was dead. With a little more rummaging, she found her charger and plugged it in. She hadn't missed much since she left Chicago. There were only a few calls. She retrieved her messages. County had called, they wanted her to come in for an exit interview. That one made her chuckle. Her father's lawyer called, he's going to start processing her parents' estate. That's good. Her real estate agent left a message that her condo was officially sold and the profit from the sale transferred to her bank account. She'd also found someone to rent her father's house until it sold. Excellent. And then there were a couple of calls from John. He was just calling to make sure she was doing all right because he hadn't heard from her since she left.

Yin Shi came in and wanted to play with her new roommate. Jing Mei found her to be a delight. She was so young and full of life, it was a blessing to spend time with her. She would call John back, but first she was going to spend a little time with this little ray of sunshine.