My friend Brittany wrote a post I loved.  Stop the Whirl:I want to get Off!  I already talked about it in reference to birth in another post.

This time I am going to post about how birth is like stopping the world for me.

But it doesn’t take a carnival ride to bring this memory back. Every time life starts getting a little crazy, a picture flashes through my mind of the five us shouting “STOP THE RIDE!” begging to be let off and rueing the moment we decided to get on.

It reminds me of a line I heard somewhere, sometime, from someone:  Stop the world. I want to get off.

My life feels like that some times. Like maybe even right now.

Indeed sometimes I want the ride of life to stop too. I think that is why I love attending births as a doula.

It is as if my life has magically stopped for hours

When I am at a birth, my life magically continues without me in it thanks to family and friends. Thanks guys!

But my life stops for me and I can be a part of a magical moment.

During births all I have to do is connect with the family and love them and be with them.  Just BE.

• I can’t check e-mails.
• I can’t do the laundry.
• I can’t pay the bills.
• I can’t call my friend I am worried about.
• I can’t drive car pool.
• I can’t help the boys with homework.

The amazing thing is, I don’t worry about any of those things.

Because I know the ride has stopped for me.

My friends and family have taken over, so I can be here. So I actually LET IT GO!  It is magical.

It is one of the many reasons I love to be a doula.

Could I make my home like that?

Or at least a moment in my families day?

A place to connect with each other, to let the rest of life keep on spinning around us as we sit quietly in the eye of the storm with love and connection.

Maybe, just maybe we could.

photo credit: schmollmolch