The morning started like many others: my alarm blaring into a cobweb of dreams and reality, roosters shouting at the sun, all reminders that another day has started. But today was different. For a moment I sat thinking on the edge of my bed, what was it I was supposed to be remembering? Ah, yes! Reality flooded through my mind and I was certain life would never again be the same. Forget alarm clocks; I’d be waking up regardless of the sunshine, roosters, or electronic machines. Forget the carefully planned schedules; I’d now be living on another’s time. Life has changed forever. I’m pregnant.

I think back to the earliest moments I can remember as a child: happy laughter, playing with my siblings, and no worries. My heart tightens as I consider the new child I’ll be bringing into this world. Will he have similar happy moments to treasure? Will she love books as I do? Will my child play from sunup to sundown and grow wild imaginations? Will our child enjoy every moment of life, yet look forward to heaven as I do?

Family certainly does grow and change. At the moment I discovered I was pregnant, I realized I’d finally grown up! I was not the same person I had been 20 minutes before the test came back positive. I now had to be different, responsible, and mature. I thought about that awhile, wondering at all of the changes it would bring. Then I smiled. I am now a parent!

Again, childhood memories filled my mind. I wonder, what hopes and fears ran through my own parents’ minds when they discovered this same reality, pregnancy? Were they frightened? Hopeful? Joyful? Excited? Anxious? Or maybe they felt a bit of all these emotions?

Imagine the first recorded pregnancy of history, Mother Eve. How did it feel to be a first-time mom with no mother or other women to provide tips on morning sickness, stretch marks, and feeding? How did she feel about the movement in her middle, the lightness in her head, and the kicking inside her ribs? Especially without ever knowing what the end result would be? Sure, she had the Creator to talk with, but He had never given birth either!

Family truly changes everything, and I know my life will never be the same. Just as my parents experienced years ago, I am now moving into life’s greatest adventure. Even though my folks are half-a-world away, the Creator is still a local call.

I feel a tiny hand waving “hello,” and thank the Lord that I have family to surround and support me in this tumultuous and exciting time of my life. Yes, my life will be different. My life will be better!

Julene Kapao teaches Bible and English at Longburn Adventist College in New Zealand. She is the daughter of Lake Union Herald columnist, Dick Duerksen.