“I think for the first time in a long time Christmas is making more sense to me Especially after I lost my father, there was that feeling of emptiness and today, with Oliver, we have that sentiment that the family is complete wherever we are,” says Maysa as she holds her son Oliver in her lap next to her partner Gustavo.
“If on the one hand, we miss the whole family, which would be our parents and my brothers, at least we have the three of us and we feel much more like a family than before,” Gustavo adds.
The Brazilian couple now lives in Australia and due to travel restrictions cannot be with the entire family this year. However, they received a reason to celebrate three months ago, when their son arrived to complete their family cluster on the other side of the world.
Photo: Maysa’s collection
For them, Oliver’s birth brought light in these difficult moments, not only for them but for those living on Brazilian land as well. “Our family is in Brazil and the situation of the covid is very difficult, besides the political and economic turmoil. And this, whether we like it or not, affects everyone who is there. Having him [Oliver] is a motivation for the family to go through this time because they know that afterwards, they will meet him, that we will stay together and spend other Christmases together,” explains Gustavo. “He’s the family’s spark of hope in times of pandemic,” Maysa adds.
They both say that the arrival of new life has made this troubled year on a global level the best of their lives. “It turned out to be a very wonderful year. So we have nothing to complain about. While it was a very difficult year for many people, we discovered ourselves as a family,” Maysa says.
“It’s amazing how every day, no matter if it’s Monday or if it’s Sunday… anyway, every day is very special with Oliver because every day he learns something new. And no matter if we’re stressed or nervous, Oliver smiles at us and then it’s all good. It’s awesome. It’s much better than anything I ever imagined,” she describes.
Still, raising a child so far from home can have its painful side. “It’s very hard to know that every day our child is getting bigger and learning something new and they [our family] aren’t being a part of it in person,” Gustavo says.
But that also makes the expectation of meeting with the family even greater. “I think it will be so exciting when they finally get to meet Oliver. He’s changed his grandparents’ lives so much. It’s amazing how such a small thing has given so much meaning to our parents’ lives and it’s so beautiful to see the love of grandparents. I had never imagined my parents being grandparents and it is the most beautiful thing in the world. It’s very pure love and we can’t wait to meet them,” says Maysa.
To conclude, Maysa still describes the gratitude she began to feel after motherhood: “It’s even complicated to talk about it because it makes you want to cry. I didn’t think I would love such a little thing so much and be so grateful for his life. And mine too, for being able to go through it. To be a mother, to receive his love back and to see him smiling every day. It’s so wonderful. You can’t explain how it feels to hold your own child in your arms,” she says with the emotion and sparkle in her eyes that only those who already hold their child in their arms can have.
“Today everything makes sense in my life because of him. We are very keen, not only for Christmas but for all the commemorative dates from now on because everything gains new meaning with a child,” she concludes.