"I Turned the New Treasure for a Hug and Saw He Was Different from Anything I Knew"

Last August, Mushky Tzik, a 25-year-old from Netanya, faced one of her life's greatest challenges by bringing a "special child" into the world, as she puts it. Mushky is married to Shneor, both are Chabad Hassidim and parents of three children. As mentioned, their third child was born this past summer with multiple anomalies and without ears. "Israel has many anomalies both internally and externally. He was born without ears and with a cleft lip and palate, which have been corrected externally," Mushky recounted in a recent interview. "Beyond that, he has an eye anomaly, a heart defect, and a spine issue. We only knew these when he was born. During the pregnancy, aside from excess amniotic fluid, everything appeared normal. Only when he was born did we see the anomalies, and although he is just a few months old, he has already undergone surgery. Now, thank Hashem, his condition is stable and he feels well."

She decided to share the emotional story of his birth on social media. As soon as it was published, the post gathered many shares and comments: "Thank you for all you created," Mushky began, "a line that sums up my life and everything I've been through up to this moment, the pain and joy, fears, and faith."

"Half a year ago, I was still pregnant with a huge belly, responding to everyone with a quarter of patience, 'No, it's not twins'. A few weeks later, I was given one of my life’s greatest tests. The birth was amazing, promising. Maybe you haven't been through childbirth or you have had a traumatic experience, but the music, laughter, and readiness did their thing, and I enjoyed every moment. After a whole day, at that perfect moment when the midwife confirmed 'That's it, he's out!', I only waited to hear him cry and hold him, cry happily with him."

"I won't forget the moment my older sister gently told me that we received a special treasure. A treasure that is unmistakable at first glance. Just like before death, it was as if particles of seconds flew by as I answered 'Okay', knowing that his life would be amazing. A second later, I turned my new treasure for a hug and saw he was unlike anything I'd ever seen. I breathed deeply and knew, I knew we would make his life amazing."

"And then finally I cried, the relief of being post-birth, the happiness of having my child, the shock of 'what do we do now'. The love and compassion for this soul going through such a challenging journey. The paralyzing fear of the unknown, of the gap between what I dreamed and what we received. In our most personal moment, I promised him he would be beautiful, filled with love, surrounded by friends, and brimming with confidence. That we would have a good life together."

"He was taken for tests and admitted to neonatal intensive care, and I promised him that I would visit. After recovery (that's the name of the stage post-birth, I'm not sure how much I recovered at that moment), I was transferred to another department. Not the maternity ward, but the women's department, where I wasn't the only one without a baby. I looked up at the white ceiling and took the days to internalize. I realized it would be harder than ever, that I would learn things I didn't know, that I would face fears and nightmares of the adults. I knew I would crash and rise. It might sound odd, but there, especially in that department, in the bed by the window, when I was alone, I appreciated what I received. Among women in the ongoing process to have a child of their own and those who lost the life of their fetus just before they became babies."

"I filled with gratitude that this treasure is mine, from within me. I didn’t fly to the end of the world to get him, I didn’t pay a fortune. He wasn’t abandoned for me to choose to adopt. He is mine, and he breathes, and he lives, and I can hug him, see him, smell him, breathe with him together. And I said thank you for everything I got and what I didn’t. Thank you for what seems dark, for what will become light."

After the post went viral, Mushky and Shneor were interviewed by Mako, during which Shneor also shared his feelings: "I think when the child was born there was an initial shock. I remember looking at her, wondering how she would react, and I remember she saw Israel, hugged him, and said - I don’t want him to leave me. It was a special moment and I have great admiration and appreciation for her. We have a large family, and everyone knew we were in the delivery room, but we needed the first two hours to ourselves and didn’t talk to anyone. We are Chabad Hassidim, and we know that everything happens with divine providence. In the delivery room, both of us had tears and I told her we will raise him and hug him. The emotional strength we gave each other was the most important and significant."