Baby ISSA’s Holy Day Out

Babies are the greatest gift that celebrates our existence. Once there is a newborn, everything will revolve around the baby. Taking pictures of these little ones is a surreal feeling. One day, they would be all grown up, looking back at these pictures would be pure joy.

So, this time around I was going to cover the Baptism of little Issa. Issa’s parent’s Tina and Alphin were settled abroad. They had come down for their little one’s special day. Baby Issa also had two naughty elder brothers, Ryan and Steve. 

The Christening function was to be held at St George Church, Pariyaram, near Chalakudy at 5 pm. But I wanted to take pictures of the baby at home, as I felt I would be able capture more candids when the baby is freely playing at home. I reached their home at Pariyaram at around 2 pm and was greeted by Alphin who was the gracious host who asked me to feel at home. As a photographer, it is very important to build a rapport with the clients, or else they tend to get conscious. I went about clicking pictures as the family was gearing up for the function. That is when Ryan and Steve caught my attention. They were bursting with energy and questions. They wanted to know all about me as well as my camera. I took their pictures and showed them the pictures in camera itself. I could see the gleam in their innocent eyes. Baby Issa, who was around 4-5 months old was sound asleep when I arrived. So we went forward to click some pictures while the baby was asleep. But soon enough Baby Issa woke up without any fuss. I think she was bewildered as to what was happening and seeing me with the camera. I went along taking pictures until I felt she would burst out crying. By then mommy, Tina, came in to the rescue. It was time to go to church. 

Baby Issa was dressed in a pretty white dress while the family coordinated their outfits in pale pink colour. As we reached the church, a lot of the relatives were already there. I quickly got into action. Everyone loves babies, and Baby Issa was no exception. She instantly started attracting a lot of attention. In the meanwhile, Alphin and Tina, went about the final preps. Baby Issa was handed over to her Godparents. The family then moved towards the entrance of the church. The priest greeted the family at the entrance and he began the prayers. The Christening Ceremony had officially begun. After the prayers, the priest drew a cross on Baby Issa’s forehead and walked towards the altar chanting prayers while the family followed. All this while, our little angel, Issa, slept peacefully.

The prayers continued after the family reached the altar. As the God parents slowly got Issa ready for the christening, the priest also got out a wooden box with some items and continued prayers. Slowly the God parents moved towards the basin for the baptism. The priest poured the holy water onto Baby Izza’s head. Izza’s Godmother was very gentle with her and her Godfather even managed to slowly rub the baby’s hair dry without waking her up. As the church function neared its end, Baby Izza continued to sleep and we moved onto take some group photos. Soon enough Baby Izza was awake, but without much fuss, she graciously posed for some pictures, one even with the priest. 

Baby Izza then changed into a baby pink dress.The whole family and other guests moved to the hall opposite the church, where a Baptism Party was arranged. The whole mood of the evening changed to a new level with everybody getting into the party mood. The stage decor was done elegantly. As the programme started, the family was first invited to the stage. Baby Issa’s parents, brothers and grandparents came onto the stage for cake cutting. The cake was beautifully designed with a small baby sleeping on the surface of the cake. After the cake cutting, the stage was left open to the guests. Some of the guests came forward to sing some songs to keep the crowd entertained. 

By this time, the sumptuous buffet dinner was ready. Slowly the guests started going in for the buffet. As the wonderful evening came to a close, everyone abundantly showered their blessings for Baby Issa's bright future and made the best out of the beautiful evening. 

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Rahul Devakumar

Creative Media Studio

We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.