“When this black couple gave birth to a white baby, many people thought that the wife had been unfaithful to her husband. But when the father understood the reason behind his daughter’s odd complexion, he burst out in tears as he realized that she was indeed his own personal Miracle. Ben and Angela simply could not believe their eyes. How was this even possible? The tiny little girl with sleepy eyes clearly had her mother’s nose, but at that moment, that was the only thing they could say: she was beautiful. But her strange skin tone made her parents stare at her for hours without being able to say a single word.
Before the birth, they had not decided on a name yet. The parents first wanted to see their child face to face and then decide what to name their baby boy or girl. After their daughter was born, both Angela and Ben knew that Machi would be a perfect name for this miracle child of theirs. The name meant beauty of God, and that was exactly what their little girl was. She was sent by God, and she was indeed beautiful, even if no one understood how she had come to be.
Both Ben and Angela Ehg Boro were black Nigerians trying to make a better life for themselves and their family. The couple had moved to Britain shortly after their wedding. They had been living on the European continent for the last 5 years. When they found out they were expecting a baby, by this time, the family already had two beautiful children. The oldest was a handsome boy, followed by a cute little sister. These children looked quite a lot like their parents. After the birth of each child, Ben and Angela dissected their features and jokingly discussed whether they most resembled the maternal or paternal family lines. But with the birth of their little daughter and Machi, they were at a total loss for words.
Doctors at Queen Mary Hospital in Situp were equally baffled when they saw the pretty white girl being born to the black couple. Although it was still extremely rare, they knew of cases where couples with mixed-race ancestry had produced a child of completely opposite skin tone. And yet, Ben and Angela had no knowledge of mixed-race ancestry. However, they decided it was time to make sure of the facts. Their situation was so unique that they couldn’t base anything on speculation anymore. It was time to spring into action and dissect their respective family lineages. Contacting their relatives, they tried to find out if there were any mixed-race relationships known to their parents and grandparents, and back as far as anybody could remember. Both confirmed that to the best of their knowledge, there were no such ancestors. If there were, that would explain little blonde and Machi.
Since all the tests pointed to this little cherub being completely healthy, the hospital told the baffled parents to go home for the time being. In the meantime, they would start looking for answers and factual-based explanations. At that time, the doctors jumped to the conclusion that Machi must have been born with albinism, as it was almost the only viable option to consider. The elder siblings, waiting anxiously at home, could not help but gasp for breath when their parents brought their little sister home to them. It looked like she had been mistakenly swapped for a white baby girl. As children are usually brutally honest, they bluntly expressed the thoughts that many adults would have wanted to share. The situation was out of the ordinary, and everybody was seeking some explanation. It shouldn’t have surprised anyone that people started jumping to their own conclusions.
The most logical explanation was for Angela to have been unfaithful to Ben. She must have had an affair with a white man and kept it a secret from her husband. But the birth of a white daughter had exposed her lies. Some people started spreading the rumor, and some were so bold as to confront Angela with their accusations. It was hurtful to be accused of being unfaithful, but Ben stood by his wife with unwavering conviction. If there was one thing he was sure of, it was the fact that little Machi was his daughter.
He had known his wife since childhood, and he knew that she was a faithful mother and wife. The last thing on his mind was that this child was a child produced from an extramarital affair. Also, even though he didn’t suspect his wife of being unfaithful, he understood that even if she had an affair with the white man, the baby would most probably not look like their daughter. The chances of having a skin tone in between that of the mother and the father was a greater probability. There had to be some kind of scientific explanation for their unique family miracle.
Despite being secure in their relationship, Ben was looking for answers. His mom was a little fairer than the average Nigerian, but that still did not explain their beautiful white child. Fortunately, this father did not have to push too hard to find answers, as the medical community was equally intrigued by this strange phenomenon and was also trying to find a tangible explanation.
By this time, the doctors had ruled out that Machi suffered from albinism; her skin tone and features simply did not fit the profile. In addition, her eyes were a bright blue. While most people with albinism have very pale-colored eyes and usually severe problems with vision, this baby’s eyes seemed to be completely normal. Her hair was a special shade of blond. The Nigerian parents were not used to their children being born with long hair with soft curls, but they couldn’t help but love her golden mane.
Medical experts were just confirming what both Angela and Ben were already convinced of. They had seen children with albinism in their home country of Nigeria and also seen pictures in books. They were already sure that Machi was not affected by this genetic condition. Further confirmation was the fact that their daughter was perfectly healthy, while many kids suffering from albinism struggle with a range of medical problems on top of their distinctive different appearance. Clearly, the birth of Machi was due to some form of genetic twist.
A renowned geneticist explained that in order for their daughter to be born white, both parents must have had some form of racial mixing in their ancestral lines. In some areas of Africa that deeply suffered at the hands of European colonists, this was more prevalent, but racial mixing in the country of Nigeria was fairly limited, making this option even more unlikely.
Geneticists were now leaning towards what could be called a previously undisclosed mutation of their genes. This basically meant that this gene developed over generations but remained hidden. Only now, with the birth of Machi, did this gene surface to cause a lot of confusion and hype. However, although this seemed to be a plausible theory, there was no evidence to prove that this was exactly what had happened with the birth of the third Ehek Boro child.
Only when Machi would have children of her own could this theory be proven to an extent, provided that they carried the same gene. Some doctors even suggested that the little girl may just be white at birth and that her skin might start to darken as she gets older. There was documentation of similar genetic mysteries occurring in the past that provided some clue, but the doctors had no guarantee that what they were predicting might even remotely come true.
The science of skin color is a fascinating topic. Skin pigmentation is predetermined by a genetic code that’s embedded in each cell of the body at conception. This coding is responsible for the amount of melanin that is present in each cell. There are a range of skin colors on planet Earth, referred to as genotypes. This is why you get people with extremely dark skin and people with almost transparent skin. Anything in between these two extremes can ultimately become the color of a person’s skin. The more melanin a person has in his or her cells, the darker the skin will ultimately be. This amount is usually similar to the parents, but in this baby’s case, no one knew why it was so shockingly different.
In the meantime, while the doctors were trying to figure out what was actually happening with Machi, life had to go on. Angela and Ben had to start integrating their child into society. Of course, wherever they went, people would point and stare. Angela once commented that she didn’t understand why people were still so focused on race in an era where many children were being adopted across cultural lines. It wasn’t strange anymore to see a white couple with a black child in public, so why would the opposite be so odd? Maybe the number of black people adopting white children was much lower, but it made this family aware of how much race still factored into people’s reactions and thought patterns.
When the family was out in public, many strangers would make comments about how beautiful this little girl was. It was obvious that she looked vastly different from her family, but some people would pretend to ignore the obvious fact. Secretly, they were hoping that the parents themselves would explain the situation without them having to ask for clues. Other people simply could not contain their curiosity and would bluntly approach the couple, asking why they had a white baby. When Angela told them that it was her and Ben’s biological child, they would initially laugh, thinking that it was a joke. When Angela wouldn’t offer another explanation, the usual response would be a shocked “really?”
As the parents were nowhere closer to finding many answers, they knew they had to find a way to start normalizing their family situation. Machi’s brother and sister and the rest of the family were slowly but surely getting used to their special family member. After all, she was just another baby, crying all the time and wetting her nappies. Besides her unusual appearance, she was just another healthy little girl who threw tantrums to get attention from her caregivers.
Eventually, after almost a year of trying to make sense of their unusual situation, the family knew it was time to shift gears. From this day onward, they would no longer focus on the fact that their daughter was so much different looking from the general norm that was expected. They wanted to focus on developing her character and making sure that the relationship between her and her older siblings was healthy and strong. They didn’t want their daughter to be treated as if she was a freak of nature. She was supposed to be a girl born into a loving family, and they wanted her to know that they had not once wished for a different child.
At the same time, they did not want the world to distinguish between their three children. So, the Ehek Boro family stopped looking for answers and started building their own reality. It was almost a year after the birth of little Machi when Ben was sitting on the balcony of their small apartment with his youngest on his lap. His baby girl was falling asleep in her father’s arms, her golden curls draped all over his chest. At that very moment, Ben realized that he was a profoundly blessed man. He had a loving and loyal wife, a good job, a roof over his head, plenty to eat, and three beautiful and healthy children. There was nothing more he needed in life.
Angela found her husband crying so loudly that Machi almost woke up. She put her arms around him and shed a few tears as well as she realized they were a one in a million family. In a world where families are often torn apart by life circumstances, it may be for this very reason that Ben decided to protect his family from a superficial world and not post much about their family on social media. They knew they were happy. They didn’t need validation from anyone.
What do you think caused little Machi to be born this way? Would you have continued to search for the genetic reason for her unique features?
