“Attending births is like growing roses. You have to marvel at the ones that just open up and bloom at the first kiss of the sun but you wouldn’t dream of pulling open the petals of the tightly closed buds and forcing them to blossom to your time line.” Gloria Lemay

I just read this quote.. and it made me think of the many births I have attended in 2009. Many of my 2009 births were LONG. And I mean like I actually went home for 2 of them to sleep and then went back!! For many I was there over 2 days.
This past weekend I had a birth where I was there for about 3-4 hours. (I got the call at 3:40 am, arrived at the hospital at 5, I think mom and dad arrived about 5:30, baby was born about 7:40 am)
It was a welcome change. I was not nearly as tired. I was not away from my family as long as usual.
But I also felt like I did not get to “hang out” with my client. We missed a bit of bonding (Because their birth is about me right,lol!!)
This quote is so true. A short birth is wonderful for so many reasons.. but I would never trade a long birth for a short one. It would be exactly like trying to pull open the petals of a rose before it is ready. And then you would miss on the beauty of that rose. People think short births are better.. but there is plenty of beauty in a long birth too. And as always, I am lucky to get to be a part of either!!