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Creating a Birth Altar, Part 2 (Unexpected Wisdom)

Creating a Birth Altar, Part 2 (Unexpected Wisdom)

Last updated on: March 25, 2013 at 12:14 pm by Priestess Molly

Creating a Birth Altar, Part 2 (Unexpected Wisdom) 2013-03-25T12:14:45-04:00 Priestess Molly

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I recently described the birth altar that I created before my last birth. Some of the elements included on the altar came from quotes from a page-a-day calendar from a $1 Shop and some were parts of a t-shirt tag from the tag on a shirt I purchased from WYSH at an LLL conference in 2009 (why keep a t-shirt tag from 2009, you might ask? Because it had lots of cool things written on it! And, behold, it became a source of birth altar wisdom for me. Wisdom lurks in unexpected places!)

I am struck by how these words from unconventional locations apply so perfectly to giving birth. Here’s what the little cards and snippets I included on my birth altar say:

From the calendar:

Inhale * Exhale * Relax * Repeat
LOVE the process.
Embrace peace within.
Keep it simple.

And, as an excellent reminder for birth and life in general:

Right here

ENJOY

Right now

From the t-shirt tag:

Befriend fear, embrace struggle, trust nature, the process, and a baby’s wisdom (I swear, this shirt had NOTHING to do with giving birth!)
We don’t tell our flowers how to grow, to stay low or bloom before they’re ready.
Undivide your attention. All clear.
Lead with your spirit, rise above the noise, show the world your true self.

Also from the tag were individual words that I included: freedom. trust. inspiration. respect. authenticity. empowerment.

Finally, I included the following from a tag on a pendant given to me by my husband:

May the Love we’re

sharing spread its Wings

and fly across the Earth

and bring new Joy to

every Soul on the Planet.

Words have always been a powerful source of inspiration to me. They’re my “medium.” During my second pregnancy, I was having a conversation with two midwives and one of them asked me what my primary “craft” was. I said, “I don’t really have one, I guess,” and my midwife said, “yes, you do. It is words.” That was a powerful affirmation for me. During my first birth, I hummed the song we use during our women’s circles and mother blessing ceremonies over and over again:

Woman am I

Spirit am I

I am the infinite within my soul

I have no beginning

and I have no end

All this I am

During my second son’s birth I talked to myself the whole time, coaching myself through a rapid train-ride of a labor: You’re okay, it’s okay, you’re okay, it’s okay.

During my third birth (second trimester miscarriage at home), I used the Woman Am I chant again to get myself through a scary trip to the emergency room.

And, one of my most potent memories of my last child’s birth was crying out after she was born, You’re alive, you’re alive! I did it! There’s nothing wrong with me! It took me a long time to be able to tell or write about that experience without crying.

What are your favorite ways to use words during pregnancy or birthing?

I often suggest that couples in my birth workshops practice affirmations as a positive word-based coping tool for labor. I have some suggested birth affirmations specifically for fathers as well as a handout of birthing affirmations available to them and I encourage them to draw on their own favorite affirmations, prayers, religious readings, or mantras as a helpful focusing point during the intensity of birth.

—

Adapted from a prior post:

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March 19, 2013

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March 28, 2013 Five Spiritual Practices to do with Children Under Three

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