Greetings from Leonora (my Mexican name)
I'm here in San Miguel for the annual walk which raises money for domestic violence prevention. I spent my first day shopping (for souvenirs and serapes) and my second day in contemplative silence and reflection. Today is a day of service, tomorrow the walk and on Sunday I return home. I'll spend today at the local maternity hospital helping plan an outreach campaign or setting up a blog or some such thing. I have the privilege of staying with a friend's villa outside of town in the countryside. It is beautiful here in the mountains. Everything is arid and dry and mostly cactus grows out of the ground- not much grass but the vistas are breathtaking. I climbed to a small summit this morning to get a better view. Fields, mountains, and stately haciendas in every direction. My friend's villa is lovely. She lives alone in a spacious 4 bedroom house- I have an entire wing to myself. She is an artist and has a loft studio where she paints. She's doing a series of Jesus(es) painted in whimsical fashion. I fell in love with a Oaxacan style Jesus and am taking him home with me. He is pictured on her website under the 'serial catholic' series. This place invites calm, and quiet reflection- just what I came to find. I'm already planning my next retreat for silence and solitude. Another San Miguel friend has moved to a monastery in Colorado and has invited me to come. After seeing the website I'm already anticipating a visit there. After reading Kathleen Norris' "The Cloister Walk" about 10 years ago, I've become fascinated with monastery life and hope to visit many in my lifetime. After reading "Eat, love pray" I also want to visit an ashram. I'm already looking forward to returning to San Miguel next January, but this time not alone, but with family and friends who want to join me in the walk. I have already booked a ranch to hold us all. I'm telling everyone its first come first serve. I'm hoping to have 10-15 people accompany me back here. We will do the walk, retire at the ranch, and do a service project for the organization that hosts the walk. I so look forward to sharing San Miguel with others. During my quiet time I've done writing on my two books and sat in meditative silence. Just so I don't sound too spiritual I've also searched the web on anything about the inauguration. I wasn't able to sit still and watch everything from start to finish because I was teaching that day. During my prayer time- I remember him and his family. Birth and breastfeeding are never far from my thoughts and I look forward to my time of service at the 'hospital maternidad' today.
Labor Repose
LaborPayne during her 6th homebirth (9th baby) at age 44
Friday, January 23, 2009
Friday, January 2, 2009
Maternity Care: Community Meeting in the Heartland
Following is the report that was generated from the meeting I attended that is mentioned in the previous post. This was a well attended meeting with excellent representation from the advocates throughout the state of Missouri, including a state representative that declined to be named. Please read and add your feedback. Big thanks to Stephanie Hedenkamp for hosting the event in her lovely home.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Big Push
PushMedia Alert
From The Big Push for Midwives Campaign
CONTACT: Steff Hedenkamp, (816) 506-4630, steff@thebigpushformidwives.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, December 19, 2008
Sen. Daschle welcomed to Heartland Maternity Care Community Meeting
New HHS Secretary invited to hear the stories of doctors and midwives, mothers, families, and others on the affordability and quality of maternity care in Missouri and Kansas
WHAT:
New HHS Secretary Sen. Tom Daschle is graciously open to attending one or more Health Care Reform Community Meetings 1 as outlined at Change.gov. The window of opportunity for him to attend is for meetings held in homes and neighborhoods between Dec. 15 and 31. We are planning a meeting "Maternity Care Community Discussion in the Heartland,” and we have invited Sen. Daschle to join us.
WHY:
The conversation will explore the national maternity care crisis, which sits atop the two crumbling pillars of affordability and birth outcomes. The recent “D” and “F” grades that Kansas and Missouri received respectively from the March of Dimes for pre-term birth rates will be examined. Further, the need for our community, our state, our nation, to immediately shift its ingrained belief “that more medical intervention, regardless of cost, is better—even when the evidence doesn’t support such a claim” will be explored, specifically as it relates to mother and child health. We’ll take a look at states like Washington that have saved millions of dollars by integrating licensed midwives into the maternity care systems of their states.
WHO:
Sen. Daschle, Sen. Claire McCaskill and Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, and their key staff, have been invited. We have also reached out to key state and local legislators here in the area. Attendees include leadership from the March of Dimes, Swope Health Services, Truman Medical Center-Lakewood, as well as doctors, midwives, constituents, and maternal and child health professionals, educators and doulas from across the region.
Sen. Daschle can hear the stories from families like Joe and Jen Wright of Lee's Summit , MO , where their struggle as a one-income household has been to pay all of the out-of-pockets expenses associated with the midwives’ care they have sought out for their family of five. Or from young pregnant moms like Shawna Couture of Overland Park, Kansas, who can tell him about the many obstacles within her Medicaid coverage as she tries to access the affordable care of midwives when she gives birth to her baby in May 2009. And he can hear from mothers in the military from Whitman Air Force Base in MO, about their problems with Tricare coverage of maternity costs, as well as outcomes.
WHERE
509 SE Miller Street, Lees Summit , Missouri , 64063
WHEN
2 p.m. CST on Saturday, December 20
I will be attending this meeting today, prior to heading to the Holy Land retreat centre for a time of quiet and contemplation and a Winter Solstice celebration with my good friend Morningstar. I'm hoping for a productive meeting and a chance to have face time with other local activists.
From The Big Push for Midwives Campaign
CONTACT: Steff Hedenkamp, (816) 506-4630, steff@thebigpushformidwives.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, December 19, 2008
Sen. Daschle welcomed to Heartland Maternity Care Community Meeting
New HHS Secretary invited to hear the stories of doctors and midwives, mothers, families, and others on the affordability and quality of maternity care in Missouri and Kansas
WHAT:
New HHS Secretary Sen. Tom Daschle is graciously open to attending one or more Health Care Reform Community Meetings 1 as outlined at Change.gov. The window of opportunity for him to attend is for meetings held in homes and neighborhoods between Dec. 15 and 31. We are planning a meeting "Maternity Care Community Discussion in the Heartland,” and we have invited Sen. Daschle to join us.
WHY:
The conversation will explore the national maternity care crisis, which sits atop the two crumbling pillars of affordability and birth outcomes. The recent “D” and “F” grades that Kansas and Missouri received respectively from the March of Dimes for pre-term birth rates will be examined. Further, the need for our community, our state, our nation, to immediately shift its ingrained belief “that more medical intervention, regardless of cost, is better—even when the evidence doesn’t support such a claim” will be explored, specifically as it relates to mother and child health. We’ll take a look at states like Washington that have saved millions of dollars by integrating licensed midwives into the maternity care systems of their states.
WHO:
Sen. Daschle, Sen. Claire McCaskill and Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, and their key staff, have been invited. We have also reached out to key state and local legislators here in the area. Attendees include leadership from the March of Dimes, Swope Health Services, Truman Medical Center-Lakewood, as well as doctors, midwives, constituents, and maternal and child health professionals, educators and doulas from across the region.
Sen. Daschle can hear the stories from families like Joe and Jen Wright of Lee's Summit , MO , where their struggle as a one-income household has been to pay all of the out-of-pockets expenses associated with the midwives’ care they have sought out for their family of five. Or from young pregnant moms like Shawna Couture of Overland Park, Kansas, who can tell him about the many obstacles within her Medicaid coverage as she tries to access the affordable care of midwives when she gives birth to her baby in May 2009. And he can hear from mothers in the military from Whitman Air Force Base in MO, about their problems with Tricare coverage of maternity costs, as well as outcomes.
WHERE
509 SE Miller Street, Lees Summit , Missouri , 64063
WHEN
2 p.m. CST on Saturday, December 20
I will be attending this meeting today, prior to heading to the Holy Land retreat centre for a time of quiet and contemplation and a Winter Solstice celebration with my good friend Morningstar. I'm hoping for a productive meeting and a chance to have face time with other local activists.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Fast Unbroken
My fast is yet unbroken. The homebirth mom from October did not consent for me to be present at her birth, and I do not stand witness to the births at the hospital where I supervise my students. As yet, it has been two years since I've seen a birth. The birth fast continues. I've also wrestled lately with thoughts of returning to midwifery. I won't go back to the CNM program. That leaves direct apprenticeship or a CPM program. I have a year to finish up my master's in education, then I'll think on it some more. A part of me still believes I can best serve women and midwifery, by not becoming one. I like my role as activist, and I can say and do things that midwives cannot. I hope to be able to affect positive changes in birthcare for women. I just haven't figured out the best way for me to do that. Yet.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Fit Test
I can't help it. I do feel somewhat like I've sold my soul to the devil. I will be free to attend meetings and conferences as before, but 40 hours out of my week I'm accountable to some other entity. It will take some getting used to. I'll give it a whirl and see how it goes. This afternoon I move into the office with all the other nursing instructors and I'll have my own desk. I both look forward to this and hold some trepidation. I tell myself- I'm only renting out 40 hours of my life per week- doing something I really like and that makes a difference- and getting compensated in exchange. Even so, it is a big change. I'll have to see if it fits.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Taken to Task
It is done. I have accepted a full time position teaching. I begin in two weeks. I've set my business up to run for the most part without me with my son as acting manager, and my office manager doing nearly all my duties now. I'm almost obssessive now about retiring my debts. This new job is the way to see that happen. I will be lead instructor of a team of three teaching OB/Peds. One has been a great partner to work with, and the other has yet to be discovered and hired. My goal now is to set about making OB/Peds the best rotation for the students. I want their experiences to be very positive (whether or not they choose these areas of specialization). I'll have the month of December to work out the kinks and get started in January. Simultaneously, one burden is lifted (steady income for the coming economic times) while two others are placed (dealing with the politics of the workplace and making a quality learning experience for my students). Today is my boss's last day. I will miss her, she has been wonderful to work with. Her replacement starts the same day I start fulltime. I'm hoping for the best. I plan for and look forward to the change and transition. My office manager and mother-in-law are our back ups for care for Josiah, otherwise he will continue here at home with Daddy since DH works nights, and the teens are home from school before he leaves for work. Even so, a part of me misses him already. Its amazing how much a baby changes the joy level of a home- even one that seemed perfectly happy before.
Speaking of babies, did anyone happen to catch the segment on Doulas on the Today Show? Well you can catch it now here. There were some nice things said about doulas, but mostly it just made me miffed. They made sure to play up the 'dark and evil' side of doulas as presented by a physician whose hospital had banned them! Then they ended by calling doulas a luxury for priviledged women! I can feel the letter writing campaigns forming. My doula listserve is already heating up. It seemed quite biased and portrayed physicians and nurses at the top of a birth hierarchy (with doulas firmly at the bottom), but I reject this view. In my scheme, moms and babies are central and everyone else is subservient to them and their needs (a circle, not a pyramid). I feel a new chapter to my book coming on...
Speaking of babies, did anyone happen to catch the segment on Doulas on the Today Show? Well you can catch it now here. There were some nice things said about doulas, but mostly it just made me miffed. They made sure to play up the 'dark and evil' side of doulas as presented by a physician whose hospital had banned them! Then they ended by calling doulas a luxury for priviledged women! I can feel the letter writing campaigns forming. My doula listserve is already heating up. It seemed quite biased and portrayed physicians and nurses at the top of a birth hierarchy (with doulas firmly at the bottom), but I reject this view. In my scheme, moms and babies are central and everyone else is subservient to them and their needs (a circle, not a pyramid). I feel a new chapter to my book coming on...
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Veg Head
I have to write about this new restaurant I discovered. I've been attempting for some time to go somewhat vegetarian/vegan. I say somewhat because I want to keep fish and seafood but I'd really like to limit eggs and dairy. Its been interesting doing eat out food without meat since that's what most of their menus are built around. I enjoy the black bean soft tacos at Chipotle's, and the veggie burger at Burger King, and the shrimp and spinach salad at Applebee's. At the Olive Garden I could live forever on their Portabella Mushroom Ravioli, with sun dried tomato sauce. However my absolute favorite place to eat out for a quick lunch is Panera. They usually have 2-3 vegetarian soups on the menu, and 2-3 delicious vegetarian sandwiches. My current favorite is the Mediterranean which includes tomato, cucumber, feta, and hummus. Speaking of hummus, there's a terrific little Mediterranean restaurant around the corner from me called the Holy Land, where I can get a yummy hummus and falafel sandwich on soft warm chewy pita bread with a salad and spanikopita- one of my favorites. Yum. And recently, I had the most delightful sandwich at the breastfeeding task force meeting in St. Louis. It was stunning in its simplicity. It consisted of sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and mushrooms on little mini sandwich buns. That's it, no cheese, it was a vegan sandwich, just veggies. I added mayo (non-vegan) and mustard to mine and it was delicious! I was amazed at how good something so simple could taste. Please feel free to send me your ideas for vegetarian/vegan lunch items I can prepare for myself or places where I could find a tasty meal (I do a lot of business lunches- so I do eat lunch out a lot, but I like to make my own lunches otherwise).
Now back to the new vegan restaurant I discovered called SEED. It's located between Union Hill and Hospital Hill, in an area undergoing rapid re-gentrification. I'm sure right now their rent is cheap because they are surrounded by industrial types buildings, and old rundown houses, but re-gentrification is slowly encroaching. Just a couple of blocks away, rows and rows of tidy new townhouses have gone up on Union Hill totally obscuring the quaint little cemetery where rests the bones of some of Kansas City's earliest settlers. You'd never know it from the list above, but my favorite class of restaurant is the independently owned restaurant, not the chains. My city happens to be home to many wonderful and unique independent restaurants and SEED (also the HOLY LAND) is one of them. It's a classic little store front eatery. You walk in and there is lovely artwork on walls painted in serene colors. The whole thing has a very calming and soothing affect. We walked up to a counter and place our order with a tall handsome young man sporting shoulder length dread locks. The restaurant is owned by a young African-American couple with a new baby. The midwife who takes me here for lunch, happens to be their homebirth midwife. Unbeknownst to me- I introduced them. You see, I routinely get calls and emails from folks looking for midwives and I just send out my list of midwives who have agreed to let me give out their info. So after our meal I get a hug from the proprietress for introducing her to her midwife. How nice! But anyway, back to the food. The menu itself first strikes me as limited and unimpressive. It is very small and basic- no Haute cuisine- just burgers, BLTs, and tacos. I think to myself, this is vegan right? But my midwife friend assures me the food is delicious. I order the veggie burger with avocado on the side. The midwife orders tacos, and her student following her for the day and lunching with us, orders the "chicken" sandwich. The sandwiches come with french fries but I also order a bowl of the soup du jour: tomato. While our food is prepared I peruse the small two room restaurant. The second room is even cozier with sofas, candles, lamps, and shelf-lined walls filled with books and for sale items. The for sale items are all "Black Power" stuff slathered in the Red, Black and Green flag, silhouettes of giant Afros, and black power fists and other 60s symbolism. One shelf is filled to the brink with old vintage black films from just before and during the blaxploitation era, another with books touting black national demagoguery. There are mugs and t-shirts and shelf after shelf of shameless commerce items devoted to the original and revised social philosophies of the Black National and Pan-African movements. Have no idea what I'm talking about? Well lets just say the whole thing was a tribute to another era in time. To top the whole thing off, there having lunch with a small group surrounding him is a local African-American community leader. He fits right in. It's like they planted him there as part of the decor. I find my way back to my table and wait for my food. The restaurant is about 3/4s full even though we arrive around 1:00 past the lunch rush. We wait a while because the midwife says everything is prepared fresh when ordered so it takes longer. When lunch does arrive, its worth the wait. My veggie burger is superb nestled between a sprouted wheat bun with caramelized (rather than mearly grilled) onions. I add my slices of avocado, which by the way are perfect, no small feat here in the Midwest where avocados are definitely not in season. The fries are nice thick steak fry cut, generously peppered, but not an excessive amount like most restaurants do, and non-reasy. They are obviously baked and not fried. The taste is pure heaven. I can't believe a veggie burger can taste so good. I also enjoyed my bowl of hot thick tomato soup. Midwife orders a large pear/pecan salad for us all to sample. I put some on a plate and slather it in their homemade poppyseed dressing. I take a bite. Again I'm amazed. How can something so simple taste so good. The greens are organic mixed baby greens (very high quality) with chunks of soft (firm not mushy) sweet pear and pecans )whole and half pieces) strewn across them. That's it. I can hardly stop eating it, its so good. I finish my small plate of it from first bite to last before I resume my burger consumption. My mouth is rejoicing, everything I taste is some small masterpiece. I want more. I order from the ample offerings of their smoothies. I get the Almond Joy- a mix of chocolate, coconut milk, and almonds. Its the perfect ending to round out a near perfect meal- not too sweet- which smoothies can tend to be. Shamelessly, when the midwife asks if I want to taste her tacos, I take half of one, because I really do want to try everything on the menu! The taco 'meat' is nestled inside an organic blue corn taco shell topped with lettuce, tomato, vegan cheese, and avocado. Vegan sour cream and salsa are served on the side. It was delicious. The obviously nonvegan student declared her 'chicken' sandwich to taste 'just like chicken' and I note that it appears to be served on a homemade oversized biscuit rather than a bun. The place, the food, the owners, the ambiance, all a delicious little treat for the palate and the soul. I can hardly wait to go back...soon.
Now back to the new vegan restaurant I discovered called SEED. It's located between Union Hill and Hospital Hill, in an area undergoing rapid re-gentrification. I'm sure right now their rent is cheap because they are surrounded by industrial types buildings, and old rundown houses, but re-gentrification is slowly encroaching. Just a couple of blocks away, rows and rows of tidy new townhouses have gone up on Union Hill totally obscuring the quaint little cemetery where rests the bones of some of Kansas City's earliest settlers. You'd never know it from the list above, but my favorite class of restaurant is the independently owned restaurant, not the chains. My city happens to be home to many wonderful and unique independent restaurants and SEED (also the HOLY LAND) is one of them. It's a classic little store front eatery. You walk in and there is lovely artwork on walls painted in serene colors. The whole thing has a very calming and soothing affect. We walked up to a counter and place our order with a tall handsome young man sporting shoulder length dread locks. The restaurant is owned by a young African-American couple with a new baby. The midwife who takes me here for lunch, happens to be their homebirth midwife. Unbeknownst to me- I introduced them. You see, I routinely get calls and emails from folks looking for midwives and I just send out my list of midwives who have agreed to let me give out their info. So after our meal I get a hug from the proprietress for introducing her to her midwife. How nice! But anyway, back to the food. The menu itself first strikes me as limited and unimpressive. It is very small and basic- no Haute cuisine- just burgers, BLTs, and tacos. I think to myself, this is vegan right? But my midwife friend assures me the food is delicious. I order the veggie burger with avocado on the side. The midwife orders tacos, and her student following her for the day and lunching with us, orders the "chicken" sandwich. The sandwiches come with french fries but I also order a bowl of the soup du jour: tomato. While our food is prepared I peruse the small two room restaurant. The second room is even cozier with sofas, candles, lamps, and shelf-lined walls filled with books and for sale items. The for sale items are all "Black Power" stuff slathered in the Red, Black and Green flag, silhouettes of giant Afros, and black power fists and other 60s symbolism. One shelf is filled to the brink with old vintage black films from just before and during the blaxploitation era, another with books touting black national demagoguery. There are mugs and t-shirts and shelf after shelf of shameless commerce items devoted to the original and revised social philosophies of the Black National and Pan-African movements. Have no idea what I'm talking about? Well lets just say the whole thing was a tribute to another era in time. To top the whole thing off, there having lunch with a small group surrounding him is a local African-American community leader. He fits right in. It's like they planted him there as part of the decor. I find my way back to my table and wait for my food. The restaurant is about 3/4s full even though we arrive around 1:00 past the lunch rush. We wait a while because the midwife says everything is prepared fresh when ordered so it takes longer. When lunch does arrive, its worth the wait. My veggie burger is superb nestled between a sprouted wheat bun with caramelized (rather than mearly grilled) onions. I add my slices of avocado, which by the way are perfect, no small feat here in the Midwest where avocados are definitely not in season. The fries are nice thick steak fry cut, generously peppered, but not an excessive amount like most restaurants do, and non-reasy. They are obviously baked and not fried. The taste is pure heaven. I can't believe a veggie burger can taste so good. I also enjoyed my bowl of hot thick tomato soup. Midwife orders a large pear/pecan salad for us all to sample. I put some on a plate and slather it in their homemade poppyseed dressing. I take a bite. Again I'm amazed. How can something so simple taste so good. The greens are organic mixed baby greens (very high quality) with chunks of soft (firm not mushy) sweet pear and pecans )whole and half pieces) strewn across them. That's it. I can hardly stop eating it, its so good. I finish my small plate of it from first bite to last before I resume my burger consumption. My mouth is rejoicing, everything I taste is some small masterpiece. I want more. I order from the ample offerings of their smoothies. I get the Almond Joy- a mix of chocolate, coconut milk, and almonds. Its the perfect ending to round out a near perfect meal- not too sweet- which smoothies can tend to be. Shamelessly, when the midwife asks if I want to taste her tacos, I take half of one, because I really do want to try everything on the menu! The taco 'meat' is nestled inside an organic blue corn taco shell topped with lettuce, tomato, vegan cheese, and avocado. Vegan sour cream and salsa are served on the side. It was delicious. The obviously nonvegan student declared her 'chicken' sandwich to taste 'just like chicken' and I note that it appears to be served on a homemade oversized biscuit rather than a bun. The place, the food, the owners, the ambiance, all a delicious little treat for the palate and the soul. I can hardly wait to go back...soon.
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