The world began not with warmth, but with a deepening cold. A newborn monkey, only minutes old, lay curled against his mother’s belly. But the warmth he sought was fading rapidly. His mother, having used the last of her strength to give birth, had passed away. The tiny infant did not understand death. He only understood the terrifying stillness and the growing chill. With a weak, instinctual nuzzle, he hugged her body closer, seeking the heartbeat that had lulled him in the womb. He was hugging the first and last source of safety he would ever know from her.
Soon, a deep, gnawing hunger cut through his confusion. His mouth began to search, rooting blindly against her cooling fur. He sought milk, the first and most vital need of life. Finding none, a soft, confused whimper escaped him. He struggled, pushing with his fragile limbs, trying to find a place to latch, but every spot was cold and still. His whimpers quickly grew into loud, frantic cries. He was crying from a sadness deeper than hunger—a primal sorrow for the loss of warmth, comfort, and the nourishment that would never come.
His struggle was a heartbreaking cycle: he would hug his mother tightly, then release her to desperately pat and nuzzle her belly, crying louder with each failed attempt. His energy, borrowed from birth, was depleting fast. The cries echoed his utter desperation—a scream into the silent forest for a comfort that was gone forever.
His piercing sadness, however, did not go unheard. A farmer, checking his field at dawn, followed the weak, ragged cries. He found the tragic scene: the tiny newborn, still hugging his mother, his face buried in her fur as he cried. With immense gentleness, the farmer pried the infant away, wrapping him in a soft cloth warmed by his own hands.
At a nearby rescue outpost, the baby’s urgent needs were finally met. A warm bottle of formula was offered. He latched on with a desperate strength, his cries ceasing as the milk flowed. His sadness was not gone—it was a shadow he would carry. But in that moment, his struggle to find milk was over, replaced by the sweet relief of nourishment and the beginning of a new, fragile chance at life.
