The following content contains major spoilers for Call the Midwife season 15, including the finale.Sister Veronica (Rebecca Gethings) has trodden a challenging path during Call the Midwife season 15, as she hung up her habit to decide whether or not to act on her desire to become a mother. This of course led to huge upheaval for a woman who has made vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and is essentially married to god.The seed of the nun not only recognising, but feeling inner turmoil about her maternal instincts, was sewn during the show's Christmas special. During the festive episode's rescue mission to The Order's branch house in Hong Kong, Sister Veronica and Nurse Crane found a newborn baby abandoned in a cardboard box.It was immediately clear the nun felt attached to the baby, and viewers witnessed the first signs of her struggle with maternal feelings, knowing she is forbidden to act on them.Rebecca Gethings who portrays Sister Veronica, said ahead of the Christmas special that her character has "mixed feelings of delight that this baby's going to be okay, but also this illogical wanting of the baby herself."However, it became clear early in season that the nun couldn't bury these feelings, and she ultimately stepped away from Nonnatus House to decide whether to actively pursuing her dream of becoming a mother.
Does Sister Veronica have a baby in Call the Midwife?
Sadly, the decision to have a baby is taken out of Sister Veronica's hands when she enters the menopause during the season 15 finale. Her friendship with Trixie's brother Geoffrey (Christopher Harper) has been a big part of her journey, and he was the first person she told of her wish to become a mother. Meeting him on a park bench for a secret conversation early in season 15, Sister Veronica says, "The thing people don't understand about the life I chose, is that so much is silence.""It isn't about when we can't speak, it's about what we can't say - what we can never name, because that might expose us." Here, the nun is referring to not having the freedom to voice her desires, because she isn't supposed to have any in her commitment to working for god.Adding that she can no longer "silence the howling" of her growing need for motherhood, Sister Veronica continues, "I want a child. I want a child of my own, to hold in my arms and keep safe and cherish, always."With conviction, she concludes, "I want a child before it becomes impossible."She also asks her friend to call her "Beryl," the name she left behind when she joined the order - another sign she had already internally set the wheels in motion to become her old self again and eschew "Veronica."
By saying she wants a child before it's "impossible," it can be assumed Sister Veronica was talking about becoming too old to become pregnant. It can also be supposed from this statement that she hoped for a biological child - there's less of a time limit if she were considering adopting, as she could be older and be OK to take this path to motherhood. She was especially brave to step away from The Order to explore her feelings, as it would be very difficult for a woman like her to be an unmarried mother, even in a time where the stigma surrounding this has dramatically reduced.However, during the season 15 finale, "Beryl," who was living with Geoffrey and enjoying what life away from religion looked like by going dancing and enjoying cocktails, suddenly woke one night in a sweat.Initially blaming her heated state on a heavy duvet, she didn't initially realise she was entering menopause.However, the reality of her situation finally dawns and she has a devastating conversation with Trixie about "leaving it too late" and "being beaten by biology."It's gut wrenching to hear her speak of the dream that's no longer biologically possible and how she'll never quite get over it.The decision now made for her, Beryl returns to The Order to once again become Sister Veronica, her dream to be a mother for ever remaining just that - a fantasy never to be realised.All episodes of Call the Midwife are currently available to view on BBC iPlayer.
