Contractions, Expansions

We’re sitting around clocking the time between contractions.

Marin’s found a “cat/ cow” yoga position which marshals the pain, and I’m learning how to press down with my weight on my hands low on her back/ pelvis that helps.

Marisa is here, Marin’s sister who came in from LA on Saturday night, and Matteo is basking in the energy of a new adult to cut snowflakes out with,

Marin was all awake when I got up around 6 this morning, which isn’t unusual, as she hasn’t been sleeping well for a month. But this time when I came upstairs, she had more to relate. The Braxton-Hicks contractions were pretty regular, for most of the night, ten, twelve minutes between. Eeka.

So we’ve been doing at-home preparations, packing hospital bags, digging out infant clothes from Matteo’s old stash. I’ve been making bread, a couple loaves, washing dishes, picking up. Turning up the heat on the water heater so Marin can stay warm in the bathtub. Turning up the heat in the house so she can shed a layer. Sending out a prep sheet (late) to my co-leader Rebecca for next week’s Chalice Circle, to hand out tonight.

Marin apparently re-delegated all the work she was expecting to be able today to finish up herself. She hooked up her computer, sent notes, and sent it out. All done this morning before I got up.

Plus, it’s minus 38 this morning at the airport, minus 35 here. But that means the sun is out, it’s a really pretty day.

It’s been a busy week of finishing up for Marin. And I’ve been reading and writing on a talk I gave at the UU Fellowship Sunday called “Reaching Out after Shutting Down.” It was about being “wounded” by participation in a religious community, how to talk about that, and how to “differentiate” as individuals and as a community. “Differentiating,” meaning, taking a stand on who you are, while remaining in committed contact with others, resolving the paradox of needing to be separate and needing to be connected, both as individuals and as a community.

What made it really interesting was a reaction Bev had in the Chalice Circle last Monday night, to the implication that Unitarian Universalism was a version of Christianity.

She brought it up on Sunday morning as we all gathered, at the Chalice Lighting, wanting to resist an unconscious “slide” into Christianity at the Fellowship. I got to include that energy as part of my talk, as an example of us being able to talk about these deep and challenging things without it becoming a “insurmountable difference” or a “problem,” or kicking up too much anxiety. It adds to the whole, people sharing their important questions and reservations with confidence and exuberance.

Things have totally lighted up this week politically. My friend Brian sent me the message last Sunday that Caroline Kennedy and Ted Kennedy were going to come out for Obama. I had been despairing over the possibility of a Clinton dynasty (“dynasty:” we’ve lived 20 years under two Bush presidencies, and one Clinton. Add another Clinton, get 28. Add VP Bush ('80-'88), and you get 36). The good news is that Obama is surging. I played and replayed this awesome music video, "Yes We Can," which MoveOn.org sent me yesterday afternoon, learning the chords, learning the words. Marin was amused. I was gripped. Yay! Super Tuesday looms.

Oh, and there was a UUFF Lay Leaders (people in charge of worship on Sundays) meeting over at our house on Wednesday, which I spent most of the day, on and off, prepping for. Big pot of soup, homemade bread, clean hours, expanded table, bowls, wine glasses, all the inevitable setup. Jana and I estimated a dozen and had seven, which including Marin and Matteo, was perfect. This house is all tricked out for having people over, parking spaces, outdoor lighting, space for Matteo and Marin to disappear after dinner, etc., which isn’t the case with our cabin.

Thursday I met with Margaret, my good friend who also attended Yale (years after I’d gone), and who introduced me to Marin up here. She and I do interviews of High School Seniors who’ve applied to Yale, in order to send the college a “hands-on” description of the student. We met with Emma, an oboist from West Valley. It was great fun for the two of us – Emma and me – to tell Margaret how strange and wonderful is the life of an oboist. I dated and also rented rooms in my house to serious oboe students in Philadelphia, and it’s become my favorite instrument, possibly because it’s so demanding, cutting, scraping, and tying reeds, sharpening knives to an incredible edge, all that before you can practice a note.

Oh, and the Unitarians have decided to offer me a job as their Director of Member Services, 10 hours a week, with possible expansion. They simultaneously offered my friend Bre, a lifelong Unitarian, the position of Director of Religious Exploration. A new era? I’m pretty excited, though I’m more excited about the next contraction, just minutes away.