Search results for: pregnancy after loss
Keep Me Awake: Prayer as a Mother
“I don’t know exactly what a prayer is. I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass, how to be idle and blessed” — Mary Oliver, from “The Summer Day” I stand in an open field, watching for signs of rain. An hour…
Read MoreLament for a Tree
It was a morning like any other, except for the chainsaws. They started early—before my two-year-old was even up—and continued on well past her afternoon nap. While the coffee brewed, I peeked out the back window and saw them: hard hats in highlighter yellow dotting the tree line, and our tree in particular. Our urban…
Read MoreWant to Pray through Birth?
At Mothering Spirit, we believe mothers need more resources for pregnancy and birth, both the beautiful and painful parts of bringing new life into the world. Here are a few of our favorites: 1. When you’re preparing for birth Get a copy of our e-books: Prayers for Pregnancy & Prayers for Birth. The collections feature prayers for pregnancy…
Read MoreComplicated Joy
For all of the beauty found in celebrating the liturgical year, I find that marking milestones by these holy seasons and rituals has a tendency to make whatever experience that much more intense and emotional for me. Pregnancy announcements during Advent—potent. Witnessing conversion and Baptism at Easter Vigil—stick a fork in me. Gifts of selflessness…
Read MoreSing a New Song: A Birth Story Retreat
RETREATS Sing A New Song A Birth Story Retreat NOVEMBER 4-6, 2022 REGISTER NOW Welcome to our first virtual retreat from Mothering Spirit! Sing A New Song invites you to reflect on birth as a spiritual experience. Whether you are a brand-new mom or birthed your babies decades ago, whether you had positive or negative…
Read Morea decade of waiting: Advent in the body
Advent is a season of strange stories and wonder-full waiting. Angels. Dreams. Miraculous pregnancies. Surprising visitors. But in a season of powerful Scripture and symbols – light, darkness, watching, waiting – we can forget that the first Advent was embodied, too. Without pregnancy and birth – messy, physical experiences – Christmas could not have happened. What…
Read MoreGrieving Together: A Couple’s Journey through Miscarriage
Grieving Together: A Couple’s Journey through Miscarriage is our new book through the common questions, crises, and grief that arise after miscarriage. Available now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Our Sunday Visitor (with free shipping). The book gathers Scripture, prayers, practical resources, and theological wisdom that speaks to the toughest questions surrounding the loss of a child:…
Read Morehearts of flesh & hearts of stone
He and I stare down at the freshly laid gravestone, edged by spring-green grass. “When people come into our office for this,” he trails off, shielding his eyes from the morning sunshine, his weathered face suddenly young in disbelief. “It’s the absolute worst when this happens,” he shakes his head, unable to speak the words…
Read MoreGrieving Together: a book on miscarriage for couples
Before we lost our twin daughters after birth two years ago – suddenly, tragically, publicly – there was another loss. Smaller. Earlier. Quieter. Five years ago we lost a baby to miscarriage. I wrote about this loss here and in my book Everyday Sacrament. Miscarriage was devastating. It upheaved what we knew about parenting. How…
Read Morewhat it means to outlive
On the morning of my 22nd birthday, I woke disoriented. It was no youthful hangover. Not the tiring drag of gazing out onto another gloomy day of Indiana grey. No. I felt strangely lost. Adrift and unmoored. I had outlived him. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Grief was woven into the fabric of…
Read Morethe other baby
Last week was the anniversary of the baby we lost to miscarriage. I could not bring myself to enter into it. I am sick of being heart-sick. . . . Remember when you were a kid and you got sick? Strep throat or stomach flu or whatever winter cold cough crud kept you home from…
Read Morewhat to do when a friend loses a baby
When a friend or relative loses a baby – from miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death – it is a devastating loss. Our family has been down this dark road three times: when we lost a baby to miscarriage and when our twin daughters died shortly after their premature birth. If you’re wondering what to do…
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