You would definitely expect a guy who has just been told "the good news" to go crazy immediately. When he goes crazy, he would definitely find the world a little different. Suddenly! As suddenly as he went crazy. He would laugh out loud, go mushy-cushy and may be, even teary-eyed. He would find the skies bluer, the water more sparkling and the freshness in air would fill his lungs an iota more than usual. His wife's loo breaks are also much more frequent, by the way. This is the first kind of difference he notices. This happens immediately after the news is broken and before his senses partially come back.
The second kind of difference is more tangible, and borne out of the usual give and take situations of life. Like most things true about life, the realization happens in tricky everyday situations. Like Sienfield and Friends, most tricky situations happen in cafes and good old grocery stores - CVS in my case. It is quite simple actually. If your wife is pregnant, you both will get a little cuddly than usual, and you will need to purchase stuff that you have never needed before... aah nothing kinky here! Just stuff like prenatal vitamins.
You may not realize how much the world changes once you reach a grocery store with a bottle of prenatal vitamins in your mind. You reach the counter of the chemist, and she gives you the usual dirty look. Bound by habit, you respond back by a dirtier one. Then, because you both have to, you start a conversation.
"I am here to buy some off the shelf medicine."
"Go to your right. Find, fetch, pay, bugger off!"
"I know where they are. Just wanted to know if we need doc's advice to purchase prenatal."
"Ahaan!"
You may not realize what all changed with that "Ahaan". Suddenly, she says what you never expected her to say. She goes, "Oh, let me help you with that. Come along. I will walk you to where they are." You walk behind her. Mesmerized. Then, she tells you the five kinds and spells out their benefits with patience. You are scared to ask her questions but she almost encourages her. You are still thinking when she just picks up a bottle and says, "Tell you what. These are the ones I took. Never had any problem." She smiles. You smile back.
Two nasty people end up smiling at each other. The world has turned more beautiful already. The smiles continue. The billing clerk smiles just because you are purchasing prenatal vitamins. She offers free advice on the best obstetrician in the town, and of course, tells you where she went for hers. Because the customers in line have overheard a little bit of your conversation (that actually delayed them!), they smile and do a "so cute" with their shoulders and pout their lips. You feel great. Embarrassed. Loved.
You welcome the incoming soul, the beginning, the first step, the new life. Then, you wink and say to the dude-in-making, "You sure made that chemist smile."
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