It took me a long time to find and become even a tiny part of a community that felt like home. After I returned from Indonesia I felt displaced, for lots of reasons, and I was desperate to find a place that would accept me. A place that would welcome me with a warm embrace. A place where I would feel safe.
I still have my own issues and feelings of displacement, but I’ve somehow become part of an incredible community in the little town that I live… a community that is one of the reasons why we are considering sticking around… a community of women that is driven by the one thing we all have in common, a mothers heart.
In the past couple of weeks one of the mothers in our community gave birth to a beautiful little girl. This mama, like so many others, has had trouble breastfeeding. She was told that she would have to supplement her daughters feeds because she was unable to produce enough milk to satisfy her tiny baby daughters needs. Anyone who has experienced the vulnerability of new found motherhood, already knows the heavy weight of those words.
This brave mama reached out to our community, and within hours she had mothers pumping breastmilk to feed her newborn child. Not long after she had swarms of volunteer runners willing to pick up, store and delivery freshly pumped milk. Within about twelve hours she had community nurses lending out breast pumps free of charge and other mums delivering spare storage bags to mamas willing/able to donate. We had other mums baking lactation cookies and within 24 hours there was a brand new baby, full and sleepy, happy and already thriving on her own mamas milk and donated breastmilk from mums right here, in our community. This mum really wants her baby to have the nourishment of breastmilk for as long as possible, and this community is standing strong in their commitment to support both mama and baby in their journey. Women standing together. Holding each other up. For no other reason than because they can.
I have been absolutely in awe of the generosity and kindness and complete and utter unconditional understanding that has come from this little urban village (and beyond).
It’s amazing what can be done, when people work together, isn’t it?
As individual as we all are, as different as our beliefs may be… in some ways we are every mother and our child is every child. Motherhood is a universal experience, and it’s more important than ever in this fast paced world to remember that we are all in this together. Would you do what you could to support another mother and her baby?
It’s the simplest things that make the biggest impact.
Now if that isn’t a feel good story to start the week, I don’t know what is.
x
Joelle - How wonderful Sash that you have become involved in such a wonderful community. Thank goodness for this mama to have the support that she has. Your blog made me feel very hearty this morning!
Emma - I so loved reading this post how awesome to support a new mum in a very vulnerable time. I would do all I could to help a new mum as mums know what a wonderful but emotional and physically/mentally hard time it can be. Well done all involved 😀
Erica - That’s one thing I loved so much about living in Tanzania- the sense of community child-rearing. Here in the United States many people freak out if you touch them or their children. In Tanzania mothers would pick up my daughter and look at her with the same joy as if they were looking at their own child. I didn’t mind one bit.
Emma Galloway - Such a beautiful image. Mums are awesome beings. xx
Rebecca - What a lovely picture, to compliment a lovely post.
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