Can I Help You? Please?

Please, let me make a difference.

Reward my hard work with a listening ear. See my passion for what it is - genuine care for you and your baby. I'm not crazy, or fanatical. I just believe in a way to give birth that veers from society's norm, but is a path that is as old as time itself. When my eyes light up when I find out you're pregnant, and I ask your birth plans, it's not because I'm looking for business. More than wanting clients, I want more success stories! I want you, my dear friends and acquaintances, to be successful. I don't ask your birth plans to make you feel inferior. I don't make little suggestions or ask questions to test you. I do it because I care.

If I give you a book, will you read it?

If I suggest an article, or make a comment about a new study I read, will you consider it?

If I look like I want to cry at the story of your planned c-section, can you please forgive me?

If you tell me everything you think I want to hear, but then go do the exact opposite of what you say, can you please, please not expect me to act joyful and OK?

If I suggest you allow your baby to come in his own time, do you understand that I do it because I want to help you ensure that your body and baby are ready and you won't end up with an unnecessary c-section?

If I probe about a fully natural delivery without epidural, do you know I am not sadistic and wanting you to have pain, but wanting you to have few complications and a successful breastfeeding relationship afterwards?

If you're a Christian, could you consider for even a moment that God designed you to give birth, and that you are not broken?

If you're not a Christian, could you consider that God designed you to give birth, and that you are not broken?

Lastly, can you forgive me for making this personal? This path I am on as a midwife is not about me, it's about babies and mommies. It's about your future health. I just can't help but be sad at times, when I see those I care about completely disregarding everything I stand for. I have some dreams that are dying painful deaths.

Can I help you? Please?

Dream With Me!

Today a friend posted this on his facebook status -

In a phone conversation with a friend of mine this morning we were discussing a project and something he said caught my attention, "Dream with me about this!" I was encouraged by that statement, so full of passion and enthusiasm, in that we should always be dreaming of doing great things for God. People, including myself, are often afraid to dream, and to dream big, and it was truly refreshing to be asked to dream!

It resonated in my mind all day...dream with me. I cradled a newborn baby....dream with me. I made a phone call....dream with me. I read out of my book....dream with me. I saw couples newly pregnant walk through the door....dream with me. I looked out on the beautiful snowcapped mountains...dream with me. I shared side-splitting laughter with my midwife friend....dream with me. I peeked into empty birthing rooms, checking their readiness...dream with me. I looked at my calendar of events for the year....dream with me.

Dream with me....

What are you dreaming of? What is lying dormant even now in your mind? What ideas did you put aside a long time ago, labeling them "Impossible", "Improbable", "Unlikely", "Unbelievable", "Too Big", or, "People would only laugh"? What is dancing on the fringes of your awareness, making you smile and look out into the distance with a look of wonder and curiosity on your face?

Dream with me...

I dream of people knowing. I dream of more babies being born into the hands of their mama, daddy, or beloved midwife in the comfort and safety of their own homes. I dream of making a difference to more lives than I did last year. I dream of educating myself even further, getting more certifications that will help me become a better, more rounded midwife. I dream of loving people so thoroughly that it is God they see, and not me. I dream of knowing God deeper, truer, sweeter than I did last year. I dream of having a prayer life that knows no bounds, only faith in a God who answers, and dares us to ask. I dream of things that are even now only coming into focus. I dream of waking up every day with another dream on my heart.

Tell me your dreams so that I may dream with you, and rejoice when a thought or an inspiration becomes real in your life.

Come. Dream with me....