Sunday, May 18, 2008

A year ago this minute

I was in labor.

Not active, high pain labor, but early labor. That afternoon, I put D down for a nap, and DH was home for some reason (it was a Friday) and we ended up getting busy. Apparently it's true what they say about sex starting labor - at least it worked that time. I fell asleep for a while afterwards, and woke to regular, although mild, contractions. I contracted every 5 minutes from that afternoon until well into the night when things finally started to ramp up and we went to the hospital. At 7:36 the next morning, my little honey bear was born.

How is it possible that it has been a year? This year has gone by so much faster than D's first year, and yet somehow it also feels like that night/day was a lifetime ago. Babies change so much their first year, they are almost unregonizable as the same person who came out on that powerful day.

Tonight I'm filled with thoughts of what it was like to give birth for the second time; the pain, the sweat, the vomit, the blood... the glory. I don't think I've ever felt closer to God than when I was giving birth. He certainly had a had in helping me get through it; but the power of creation is rarely, if ever, so present than in the moment when a new life emerges from your body. You know he is in there, feel him kicking and squirming for so many months and then suddenly there he is, real and whole and breathing.

It takes my breath away.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Happy, Happy Birthday G-man.

Big hugs, mama.