Wanderlust
I swear I must have been a gypsy in a previous life. My mom refers to it as a bad case of "ants in the pants". Apparently it is genetic because my dad has it too. The long, boring Nebraska winters are particularly hard for me. I thought I was going to go crazy yesterday. First I spent an hour searching the classifieds for my husband trying to find a job for him in another state, or better yet, in a Mexican resort town. I didn't have any luck with that so I decided to pack my three kids up and pile them into the van for one of my searches for adventure within a two hour radius of Omaha.
I have been searching for five years now and as of yesterday, everything within a two hour radius pretty much looks the same. I used to live in New Jersey and the variety of the northeast was the perfect prescription for my ants. Within 45 minutes to two hours I could be hiking in a forest, swimming at the beach, skiing in the mountains or shopping in the Big Apple. Another area I have recently become enchanted with is the mountains of northern New Mexico. My parents just built a cabin there and we spent a fabulous Christmas visiting my parents in their new digs. The culture of New Mexico is a fascinating blend of Native American, Mexican and Anglo Saxon. The landscape is unbelievable, most deserving of the state's slogan "The Land of Enchantment". The other draw of New Mexico for me is their acceptance of alternative medicine and midwifery. You can open the yellow pages and find an ad for a naturopathic physician or a lay midwife. Over a fourth of all births in Taos County take place in a birth center or a home, an enviable statistic in my mind!
This morning, however, I was reminded of some of the things I do love about Nebraska. Every other Saturday is my "day off". My husband takes care of the kids and I can go wander around town. This morning I sat and had a cup of coffee at my favorite coffee shop, Caffeine Dreams, and then took in a breath taking exhibit at our first class art museum. I really do enjoy the city of Omaha. I find Omaha to be a culturally enlightened city with great music, great artists, interesting museums and tasty restaurants. I dream of moving to New Mexico, but after an enjoyable day in our city and after thinking about the truly amazing things that have happened to me here I wonder if when moving becomes a viable financial option for us, will I really want to leave?
My two youngest babies were born here. My youngest baby was born in the big, comfy king sized bed that feels so good to crash in at the end of a long day. This house is truly filled with memories. We live in an old house, which when I think of all the repairs that need to be done, I want to sell and be done with. But then when I think of the fun projects we have planned for our huge, tree filled yard, like planting an herb garden or a strawberry patch, I am sure that I never want to leave.
I don't know if we will ever leave. My husband has asked me if I will really want to stay put in a new place if we leave here. Maybe not. Maybe I just need to learn about contentment and remind myself that the grass is not always greener on the other side (the New Mexican desert is definitely not greener!). Maybe I just need to learn to be thankful for the blessings I have. Because I most certainly am blessed. Its just that I, like most people, can forget about those everyday blessings that are most certainly there, but just take a conscious decision to focus upon.
I think the only thing that will chase me out of Nebraska is becoming pregnant again and not being able to find a midwife to attend my homebirth. I know that may sound trivial to many people, but my homebirth was one of my most life changing experiences. I am thoroughly convinced of the fact that home is the ideal setting to bring a new life into this world, ideal for the baby, ideal for the mother, and ideal for the family. The state I live in is enlightened in many ways but the political and economic grip that the allopathic medical community has in our state is at best unfortunate and unproductive and at worst harmful to the health of families. A look around the world and around the country at birth practices, studies of homebirth and midwifery, infant mortality and morbidity statistics, and maternal mortality and morbidity statistics will show any open minded and thinking individual that midwifery care in a setting of the mother's choosing is most certainly a rational option that should be open to the citizens of our state.
I have been searching for five years now and as of yesterday, everything within a two hour radius pretty much looks the same. I used to live in New Jersey and the variety of the northeast was the perfect prescription for my ants. Within 45 minutes to two hours I could be hiking in a forest, swimming at the beach, skiing in the mountains or shopping in the Big Apple. Another area I have recently become enchanted with is the mountains of northern New Mexico. My parents just built a cabin there and we spent a fabulous Christmas visiting my parents in their new digs. The culture of New Mexico is a fascinating blend of Native American, Mexican and Anglo Saxon. The landscape is unbelievable, most deserving of the state's slogan "The Land of Enchantment". The other draw of New Mexico for me is their acceptance of alternative medicine and midwifery. You can open the yellow pages and find an ad for a naturopathic physician or a lay midwife. Over a fourth of all births in Taos County take place in a birth center or a home, an enviable statistic in my mind!
This morning, however, I was reminded of some of the things I do love about Nebraska. Every other Saturday is my "day off". My husband takes care of the kids and I can go wander around town. This morning I sat and had a cup of coffee at my favorite coffee shop, Caffeine Dreams, and then took in a breath taking exhibit at our first class art museum. I really do enjoy the city of Omaha. I find Omaha to be a culturally enlightened city with great music, great artists, interesting museums and tasty restaurants. I dream of moving to New Mexico, but after an enjoyable day in our city and after thinking about the truly amazing things that have happened to me here I wonder if when moving becomes a viable financial option for us, will I really want to leave?
My two youngest babies were born here. My youngest baby was born in the big, comfy king sized bed that feels so good to crash in at the end of a long day. This house is truly filled with memories. We live in an old house, which when I think of all the repairs that need to be done, I want to sell and be done with. But then when I think of the fun projects we have planned for our huge, tree filled yard, like planting an herb garden or a strawberry patch, I am sure that I never want to leave.
I don't know if we will ever leave. My husband has asked me if I will really want to stay put in a new place if we leave here. Maybe not. Maybe I just need to learn about contentment and remind myself that the grass is not always greener on the other side (the New Mexican desert is definitely not greener!). Maybe I just need to learn to be thankful for the blessings I have. Because I most certainly am blessed. Its just that I, like most people, can forget about those everyday blessings that are most certainly there, but just take a conscious decision to focus upon.
I think the only thing that will chase me out of Nebraska is becoming pregnant again and not being able to find a midwife to attend my homebirth. I know that may sound trivial to many people, but my homebirth was one of my most life changing experiences. I am thoroughly convinced of the fact that home is the ideal setting to bring a new life into this world, ideal for the baby, ideal for the mother, and ideal for the family. The state I live in is enlightened in many ways but the political and economic grip that the allopathic medical community has in our state is at best unfortunate and unproductive and at worst harmful to the health of families. A look around the world and around the country at birth practices, studies of homebirth and midwifery, infant mortality and morbidity statistics, and maternal mortality and morbidity statistics will show any open minded and thinking individual that midwifery care in a setting of the mother's choosing is most certainly a rational option that should be open to the citizens of our state.
posted by Danielle at 12:10 PM
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