36 Years Ago Today

"The Lord will guide you always."
Isaiah 58:11a NIV

(Original Post: Friday, January 7, 2011; revised)

I will never forget the day in December of 1975 when my obstetrician casually asked how my “breathing classes” were going as he measured my watermelon-sized belly. I was 21 years old and it was my first pregnancy. I was less than two weeks away from the projected due date.

“What breathing classes?” I asked, moving into panic mode as he explained Grant and I should have taken eight weeks of classes to teach me how to breathe during labor. Oops. Somebody in the office had forgotten to tell me. Now it was too late.

I drove straight home and called my mother. (This was before cell phones). “I can’t have a baby,” I sobbed. “I don’t know how to breathe!”

I’m sure mother was laughing on the inside, but she didn’t laugh at me...good thing...I wasn’t in any shape to be made fun of. I was a mess! Mother assured me the baby was “coming out” whether I knew how to breathe or not. And, in fact, “she” did just that.

Perhaps breath-less would be a good description of how I felt 36 years ago today, holding our first newborn baby in my arms. Who was I that God would bless me with such a precious miracle?! And how could I possibly know what to DO with her? 

Good thing for Gwen...God had a plan. He’d already given me a wonderful example who’d been teaching me all my life...my own mother who loved me unconditionally. Next, He put wonderful women in my path to mentor me, walk alongside me, hold my arms up when I was weary, and encourage me when I felt I’d failed. And He blessed me with a supportive husband who didn’t run away from dirty diapers or midnight colic or his postpartum wife. I was by no means perfect, but by God’s grace Gwen, followed by Shannon, Becky and Drew all turned out to be great kids who grew into amazing adults! While I don’t quite subscribe to the politics of “it takes a village to raise a child”, I couldn’t have done it without God and some very faithful people in my life!

Heavenly Father, thank you for trusting me with the lives of my four children...and for patiently standing by me as I learned what it meant to be a mom. Thank you for special people who played a role in helping me succeed. You, more than anything, were the rock that kept me (and my kids) from sinking! I love you! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.