The first cry of a newly born child is beautiful. In most other circumstances, wailing and screaming is associated with loss, fear, or suffering. But the first cry of an infant is the breath of life, as the child transitions...
When my niece, Willa, was born, she couldn’t breathe very well. I’d been waiting in the hospital corridor with a crowd of other family members, and a few minutes after we applauded her very first cry, she was taken from...
THIS I BELIEVE Birth is magical. Growing a full human being from two little cells is a miracle, and bringing that baby into the world is a feat of nature. Women who can own that magic and take credit for...
I believe in the power of a woman to bring forth the life in her womb. In today's medical world, birth is treated like some sort of disorder that must be managed, that only doctors can deliver babies. I'm here...
Several times a year, I put my life on hold. I don't leave town, I don't have a glass of wine with dinner, and I always have my cell phone handy. Every night, I'll evaluate my energy level and often...
Having been given the privilege to be present at numerous births and almost as many deaths, I have come to believe there are many similarities between the process that begins life and what occurs at the end of life. The...
When I was eight months pregnant, a friend looked at my ballooning body and said that if he had to choose between going to war and giving birth, he’d choose war. I was dumbfounded. Perhaps he was so terrified by...
