The Evolution of Mom

Birthing In March of 2012, Jeorgina was born on a Friday morning at 9:28 a.m. When my water broke on a Wednesday evening, I did not realize it because it did not resemble the gush that one usually hears about when water breaks. I was in awe of her arrival, feeling “I can’t believe she exists.” She hardly fussed, and she took to my breast immediately. Within five minutes, she was eating the colostrum that would provide her with amazing nutrients to start her life. I sat in the recliner my husband had placed in the dining room. Jeorgina was born at home, in a peaceful environment, my husband, my midwife, and my friend quietly surrounding her new life. She was not weighed or measured until three hours later, in a lovely silk net my midwife had acquired on her travels to Vietnam. Kimm gently set Jeorgina on the net and enveloped her before she lifted her up as she tied a knot at the top. She attached the knot to a meat scale. Jeorgina hung from the scale as my midwife asked us all to guess her weight. I guessed seven pounds six ounces, and I was correct. Yay, Mama! As a woman, every birth brings you another step closer to the potential you see within yourself. A birth strengthens your spirit, especially if you allow yourself to remain in tune with your baby. A distinct change takes place in your person. You feel it and understand it— you actually realize it. A birth helps a woman (and a man!) evolve. Months before Jeorgina was even born, my husband and I discussed delivery options. I told him that I had been looking into a birthing center, and he confidently said that if that was a consideration, why not deliver the baby at home? It was almost as if that single statement became a culmination of all the years of growth and development I had done as a woman, which he was able to summarize with those few words Why not deliver the baby at home? I felt that because he had so much confidence in us over having this little baby at home, I should as well. It did not take much to convince me; we proceeded to research homebirth midwives online. Homebirth midwives are rare, incredible souls who are confidently able to guide a woman through the birth journey. They are among the loveliest, most caring, compassionate, and beautiful people you will ever meet. What a wonderful job that must be! My understanding is solely based on my midwife’s joy and devotion to her career, but her leave of absence for a month or two during the year also shows me that it can be exhausting as well. The reward is continual spiritual growth for the midwife, as well as elevated strength and determination that is embodied by the birthing mother. We interviewed Kimm at the eatery at Jivamukti Yoga Center in Manhattan, at her request. A vegan at the time, I was already happy with her choice of place, which offered an easy menu from which to choose. My husband also approved, as he felt it was somewhat indicative of the type of person we would be meeting. I recall waddling up 13th Street, pregnant for the first time and excited that the woman we were meeting might potentially help bring our baby into this world. It was November in New York City, and it was cold, but inside I felt a continuation of the deep joy I had been experiencing regularly. A very spunky middle-aged Chinese woman named Kimm approached our table; she was fully equipped. She had a backpack and a quirky sense of humor. She reminded me of a true nomad or traveler, as the backpack was her everything. Every visit thereafter, Kimm seemed warm and bundled. She had little feet that were planted on the ground, like she came to Earth with a deep sense of direction and purpose. And cozy, like she’d stepped out of Tibet with the purpose of serving other people. I could swear that she’d lived a previous life in the Himalayas. She walked through life with backpack in hand, driving an orange car, which stood out from all the others when it was parked on my street. I constantly learned new information from Kimm when she expressed wonderful ideas from sharing information with other midwives in her travels. In some way, I was living vicariously through her experiences, as traveling is and will always remain one of my greatest passions. At the moment, though, my work was focused on birthing as naturally as possible, and Kimm’s visits became deeper and increasingly more in tune with our vision of birthing, as well as our place in the grand universe. Kimm was accompanied by my friend Patrizia, who became our doula during Jeorgina’s birth. I chose Patrizia because I wanted to see her grow from the experience of being involved in a home birth. After watching the beauty of a home birth, she was certainly inspired to not only believe in me but to believe that women birth through their inner strength, and no one else’s. When Elijah was born, a different vibration surrounded our young family. The way my body was feeling, I knew Elijah was ready to join us in the world with great force and rapidity. There was a minor setback in my life during that month; our landlord was asking us to leave the property and was acting quite aggressively about the situation. His phone calls were incessant, which made me very uncomfortable. And I felt that Elijah’s birth was delayed because of the sadness I felt. Elijah’s due date fell on Chinese New Year’s 2014. Though I believe that due dates need to be ignored most times—how can anyone predict the exact date of a child’s birth?—I began to feel uncomfortable during the New Year’s celebrations. I called Kimm that evening and described how I was feeling. My water had not yet broken.