Why I Still Giggle At The Word ‘Penis’ At The Age of 37.
It’s immature, but to me it means much more.
My wife and I hate surprises!
We’re rubbish at keeping secrets from each other and there is no way we could have gone nine months not knowing if we would have a boy or a girl — so we knew from the beginning that we would want to know the sex of our baby.
I wanted a boy and I didn’t even try to hide it.
If we found that we would be having a girl, I would have been just as happy and in love before I even met her, but deep down I wanted a son.
The week before our second scan, my wife’s friends had us convinced that we were having a girl. This got into my head, and I started feeling certain that the scan would show us a girl — I had warmed to that scenario.
I don’t know if it’s a global thing, but in England (where I’m from) we have this nursery rhyme called ‘One for Sorrow’ — and it’s about magpies.
The origins of the rhyme are based on superstition relating to how many magpies you count, and although I don’t believe in omens and superstitions, I was looking for signs and clues as to what the scan would reveal.
The rhyme goes like this:
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret never to be told…(and so on).
We were sat in the waiting room of the hospital. I was looking out of the window when I spotted three magpies dancing around playfully on the roof of the building opposite.
Three for a girl!
That was the last bit of convincing I needed. Right then, the door opened and the doctor called us into the room.
I was now about 95% sure that in a few minutes, the doctor would tell us we would be having a baby girl — and I would be the father of a beautiful daughter, a little princess, a real daddy’s girl!
First though, the most important part…
All preferences go out of the window whilst the lady in a white coat checks the vitals.
At this point I should point out that this whole examination took place in Finnish (I live in Finland) and I knew a lot but I was still learning the language, so my wife had to translate and relay everything back to me.
…heart beat…strong
…all organs…exactly where they should be and functioning well.
I felt a wave of relief just seeing that tiny black pulsing dot on the screen and hearing the comforting noise it made — our baby is alive in there and she is perfectly fine.
The doctor continued the examination, moving the scanner over my wife’s stomach explaining what she sees…in Finnish.
I don’t know why, but for a second I look away and at the ground.
As I do, I hear the most amazing word I’ve ever heard in my life…
Like I said, I was far from fluent, but this particular Finnish word I was 100% certain of — and as soon as I heard it I felt more joy than I’ve ever felt in my whole life…
…that word was…
‘Pippeli’
The closest translation in British-English for the word ‘Pippeli’ is ‘Willy’!
Penis, todger, winky, ding-a-ling, tallywacker…it’s a BOY!!!
I am having a son!
I didn’t cry, I just smiled as tears came out of my eyes.
My wife looked at me and she could see that I understood completely.
WOW! I have never been so present in a moment before.
I felt absolutely everything. There were no worries, not a single memory, or wish for the future. The only thing I could focus on was every single individual second in that room in that moment in that time and in that space.
The doctor explained the last few things as I sat looking at my wife, completely in love with her.
I walked out of that room a new man.
I felt like skipping out of the hospital and stopping everyone I passed on the street to tell them I was having a boy! If anyone has seen the movie ‘500 Days of Summer’, you’ll know what I mean when I say that I was playing Hall & Oates, ‘You Make My Dreams Come True’ in my head for most of the walk home.
I was so incredibly happy, and I still smile when I think of that day…I’m smiling now as I’m typing this story 8 years later!
It makes me smile just thinking about how a Finnish word that I didn’t even know existed until I learned it from a friend as a joke, came to be the word that makes me happier than all the words in the English language put together.
Whenever I hear that word now I can’t help but giggle to myself, and I must look so immature to be giggling at the word for ‘penis’ — but it means so much more to me.
It means…
It’s a BOY!
How was your “gender reveal” experience?
