LIFE IS MESSY

As we get closer to the countdown for JP's arrival one might be inclined to ponder the whole issue of child bearing. It's uncomfortable,you have to follow dietary and medical protocol, your clothes fit funny, you deal with issues of not feeling well or feeling things you never felt before - some good, some bad, some surprising. It takes nine long months where you have to maintain a certain level of calmness to the outside world, worry about things that never occurred to you before, take a crash course in being a mom (which none of us are ever prepared for), realizing that it is no longer me but we.

Then the birth itself is somewhat noisy, chaotic, painful,exciting, scary and yes, messy. Usually the calmest one in the room is the Mother-as we have no choice. The child is making their arrival ready or not. Seems like there should be a better system after 3,000 odd years of bearing children (sorry folks evolution did happen).

But it works. In nine (actually short) months an entire human being is formed with everything, for the most part, they will ever need to survive in this world. Bones and brain; organs and senses; personality and predispositions. Remarkable that inside a woman grows this wondrous being that starts as a microscopic egg and a sperm and emerges as a fully formed child. Seems like the process should take years and in a stronger container. But women are strong and the system is well-designed so it works. Messy but miraculous.