It was at a Home Birth That I Learned to fry an egg Properly
It was at a home birth that I learned to fry an egg properly. Sunny side up. The yolk not quite runny but not hard either. Somewhere inbetween. Heat the pan, add the oil (coconut oil was used in this case I think), crack the eggs into the pan. Sizzle sizzle. Crackle crackle. Pop pop. Then cover the pan with a lid and turn off the heat. This was served on toast smeared with avocado and cracked pepper and salt. At the same home birth I also weeded the garden in the sun. It was at a home birth that I first learned to follow the lead of the cat. I learned the patience to sit in the garden while the sun set silently and the new mother found her rhythm. It was at a home birth that I found out that birth is unpredictable and that midwives need to think quickly on their feet and that they need the necessary skills, to deal with the rare emergencies that present themselves, burned into their muscle memories. It was at a home birth that I learned what excellent reflexes I had when a baby bungie jumped without warning out of her mother as her mother waddled across the kitchen floor. It was at a home birth that I learned that labour can rock to any tune and that a mother may roar to Linkin Park at full blast, sigh to Miles Davis accompanied by the soft splashes of the birth pool, or swing and twist her hips like a snake,to Ravi Shankar, evoking images of a belly dancer. It was also at a home birth that I learned that Dr. Phil could even be suitable background music. It was at a home birth that I learned to master knitting a sock. And at the next home birth I very nearly finished the pair. It was at a home birth that I sat with a wide eyed little girl on my lap as we looked at her vernix covered sister for the first time. It was also at a home birth that I saw a five year old boy reach out his hand as his sister’s head emerged – he was the first one to touch his sister. He gasped in amazement. It was at a home birth that I learned to draw the curtains and turn off the lights. And to keep my mouth...
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