Back From The Farm!

Which may come as a disappointment to those who found themselves as delighted as I did with Matt's turn as substitute blogger. But, my week on the Farm was absolutely wonderful. Not so much life-changing (though in many ways it was) as it was life-affirming: a great big nod to me that I'm going in the right direction. I was down there with a group of 15 women, including five British midwives and two German, and we had an amazing time sharing stories and comparing notes and laughing and getting to know each other. Sitting around with people like Ina May Gaskin and Juliana Fehr, who were some of the first writers/midwives to kindle my interest in midwifery back in nursing school, made me feel like I was really a part of a community--and one worth belonging to. I was also struck by the quantity of practical, hands-on skills and knowledge, as well as pure wisdom, that could be lost to obstetrics and midwifery if there aren't younger people willing to apprentice themselves and carry the torch. Looking around at the other women from around the world and realizing how much we had in common to unite us was inspiring and meaningful, and renewed my sense that the outrage I feel when I come home from a day of "induction and C-section" (as I like to call Labor & Delivery) isn't misplaced or abnormal. On top of that, we did a lot of laughing and really bonded.

One of our sessions with Dr. Fehr

The gang, in front of our cabin 

Ina May (a fellow Iowa girl!) and me

Incidentally, I was also able to embrace my vegan side, and surprised myself with how great I felt. Of course, a diet that extreme is also much easier to embrace when somebody else is shopping and cooking for you! But, it reminded me that even if I do eat eggs and dairy, there's probably a lot more I could be doing with grains and tofu to help me achieve the level of energy, and, yes, regularity that I found on the Farm. So that's something that Matt and I will be working to incorporate.

Bottom line: I'm so happy to be back home with Matt, and I'm also glad to have had this week to recharge and be inspired. I'd almost forgotten what it was like to connect with a group of other women that way, and it's reinforcing to know that there are so many others out there fighting the good fight.