In 2008, Rajo Devi became the world's oldest mother at the age of 70. The couple spent 50 years fighting an unsuccessful battle with infertility.
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| Source: YouTube |
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"I waited decades for this spring of happiness to come into my life," she says. She is also happy that she no longer has to face the stigma of being infertile in her community in Haryana, India.
She and her husband, Ballo, 78 years old, were both shamed by their neighbors because they didn't have a child. To cope with this, they would often avoid their neighbors and miss local weddings or festivals.
When no attempts to conceive a child worked, Rajo's husband was offered to marry Rajo's sister. Even though it is illegal to marry a second wife, in rural areas, marriages are almost never officially registered. Ballo and Rajo’s sister got married as Rajo hoped this will bring a child in their family. The three of them lived happily together for another 10 years until it turned out that even the sister couldn't conceive.
The couple gave up all their attempts to have a child until one of the members in the village informed them about a 60-year-old couple who managed to have twins after a doctor in town gave them injections.
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After meeting the doctor, the couple found out that Rajo's sister, despite being younger, couldn't proceed with IVF because she had hypertension. So the ball was in Rajo's court now. As for Rajo, she preferred to die rather to live a childless life.
So Rajo and her husband mortgaged their farmland, which allowed them to raise the money and proceed with IVF injections.
Forty days after the IVF procedure, it was confirmed that Rajo was pregnant. "After hearing the news, my husband sat by my side and would caress my stomach," she says.
"It was the first time I had seen the tender and emotional side of my husband in our 55 years together," says Rajo.
Eight weeks before the delivery date, Rajo was rushed to the hospital due to intense bleeding. Fortunately, the doctor saved her and she delivered a healthy baby girl.
The village and their house were filled with the joy and giggles of the baby girl, whom they named Naveen.
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| Source: YouTube |
Both Rajo and Ballo have decided to raise Naveen as both a daughter and a son. "She’s our daughter and son, too. We’re sending her to a convent school. She speaks English, Hindi, and Haryanvi and has a keen interest in painting. I want her to become a doctor someday and serve society," says Ballo.
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Meanwhile, for Rajo, having a child has taken a toll on her health, and she is now undergoing treatment for ovarian cancer.
"We are all getting older and frail by the day. Age is catching up with us. I just hope she grows up fast, outpacing our ageing. Once we see her married, we can die in peace," she says.
"Every day, I silently thank God for the gift he gave us. I cannot hug her and kiss her enough. I look forward to her returning home after school so I can play with her, feed her, and cuddle up next to her. Our life is complete now."
There is certainly no timeline when it comes to real-life miracles, just as it happens for this struggling mother who was reunited with her son whom she gave up for adoption 33 years ago. Or when this baby had tumour but was born twice.
According to a Daily Mail follow-up interview in 2015, Rajo was still alive a decade after giving birth. “She is the only reason I’m still strong and hasn’t given in to illness,” she said.
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