Saturday my wife and I spent 16 hours at a hospital where our daughter-in-law Bethany was in labor, and – after an emergency C-section – gave birth to our first grandchild, Lael Olivia.
Much has changed since my wife Patty gave birth in the 1980s. The birthing rooms are more suitable to making the mother comfortable rather than being convenient for the doctor. Advanced pharmaceuticals can ease much of the pain of difficult labor. My son Josh posted updates on Facebook as the labor progressed. And Lael even had her own Facebook account a few hours after emerging into this world.
Yet over the centuries little has changed in the prelude to being born. We can’t determine when exactly the little person will come out, even if the mother is induced. We can’t hurry the process of dilating the cervix, which can take hours after labor begins. And we can’t foresee the need for an emergency Caesarian section when the baby is too large to come the conventional way.
What a miracle for a 9 pound, 4 ounce baby that has been living in a mother’s womb to suddenly spring to life on her own. Despite medical technology, so many things could go wrong for both mother and child.
When things don’t go according to plan and we are overwhelmed with fear, what a comfort it is to know that ultimately all life comes from God.
So true. I find it more difficult when faced with my own child at risk though.
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