Until today I've always thought that "Quickening" was the prize Connor MacLeod of clan MacLeod won after beating all the other immortals in the world. If you have no idea what I just said, you haven't seen the move "Highlander".
So, I was in total shock when I read about our Fethi the Fetus reaching quickening sometime in the second trimester. How could that be? How can Fethi be immortal without being born? Are there no other immortals left in the whole world thus making our child the default recipient of the big prize? How can it be that this pregnancy book is written only for Aylin and I? I had a lot of questions that needed to be answered.
As usual, I consulted my favorite repository of knowledge, Wikipedia. It describes quickening as the moment of the initial motion of the fetus in the womb as it is perceived or felt by the pregnant woman. For centuries, this first feeling of movement of the fetus by the expectant mother was considered to be the official beginning of the possession of "individual life" by the fetus.
You would think that I would have been disapointed to discover that Fethi the Fetus is not "the" immortal champion of the world. But no, not even the slightest bit. As a matter of fact, I feel completely the opposite way. Our child is achieving quickening, and I couldn't be happier, more satisfied or proud. It's the greatest prize that I can ever think of receiving. Take that Connor MacLeod.
By the way, for those of you who haven't seen the movie Highlander, it's worth renting just to see a French actor, Christopher Lambert, play a Scottish highlander and a Scotsman, Sean Connery, play a Spanish noble. Think about it.
