Archive for July, 2009
Homework Assignment No. 1: The Infertility Survival Handbook, Knitting and Opening Your Heart
July 23, 2009 | By: Elizabeth
I have to admit that I have been struggling to come up with a homework assignment for everyone, and for myself. I have my real homework to do from my coach, regular client work, drafting my eBook series (yes, I really am working on that!) and my new project (announcement very soon) . . . so finding time to figure out an assignment hasn’t been easy. Fortunately, someone else gave me the inspiration.
I am a knitter. We all know that. Anyone who read the Infertility Survival Handbook Knows that throughout my infertility and adoption journey I was knitting my little man’s lovey blanket. I couldn’t always knit, sometimes it was too painful, but I do believe that knitting that blanket opened my heart bit by bit to the possibility of motherhood. No, to the PROBABILITY of motherhood. I read knitting magazines now for fun, and I have about a half a dozen projects in the works. My very special clients usually get a hand knit baby gift about two years after their baby is born or comes home. It turns out, however, I am not the only knitter who went through infertility. Now what are the odds of that? In the current issue of Knit Simple Magazine, the “last stitch” (an article at the back of the magazine) is written by a former attorney now author of knitting books. In her article, entitled Happy Endings, she discusses how she knitted throughout her infertility and pregnancies. I showed my DH the article and he asked me: “you think she read your book?” It sure sounded like maybe she had, and if she hadn’t, we had definitely travelled similar paths. She too feels that her knitting opened her heart to motherhood and gave her a vision and hope for her future which included children.
Now I am not suggesting we all start a knitting or crochet project. But there are many things we can do, crafty or not, that tell the Universe (the All-That-Is, God, Allah, Buddha) that we are visualizing our family, making a space in our home and our hearts for our family. I don’t care what your favorite thing is, but your first assignment is to pick a project — any kind of project — and start working on it. You could knit a baby blanket, a baby layette, crochet a baby afghan, knit a baby hat, needlpoint a nursery rhyme, paint a picture, create a scrapbook of your infertility journey, paint the nursery walls, write and frame a letter to your baby, start an adoption diary. The only rules are it has to be related to putting infertility behind you and focusing on life on the other side, life with child. Make, create something for that baby or child.
And keep a pad of paper next to you. This is for homework assignment number 2. As you work on your project write down any thoughts that come up, good or bad, related to the baby, the experience, the needles, the paperwork for your adoption. If you feel like it’s all a joke and a waste of time, WRITE THAT DOWN. If you feel suddenly free, and excited, WRITE THAT DOWN. As you work, write little bits and pieces of the thoughts that pass through your consciousness. We’ll talk about them next time.
Happy Creating a New Life everyone!
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The dog ate my homework.
July 14, 2009 | By: Elizabeth
As some of you wait for me to post a visualization homework assignment I wanted to let you know why I haven’t done it. Well, the dog ate my homework! Okay, it didn’t work in 4th grade (even when the dog had eaten my homework) and it doesn’t work now. But like the rest of the world, I get caught up in life and I got majorly caught up in life these past two weeks. I have a lot going on which I plan to blog about but really, as many of you can understand, I got caught off guard when I realized that AF was 2w4d late.
I don’t think I have ever journeyed through time so fast as I did in the moment I realized that AF was beyond late and that I was in serious denial as to why. So I sat down with old homework assignments and faced the reality of the fact that she might be late for a reason. I sat down with those old homework assignments and dealt with how I felt about it. My life truly stopped in its tracks. Never mind that I had promised Robyn that I would work on my E-Book and have a draft ready for the graphic designer. Never mind that I had promised Robyn I would do my homework assignment for this week. Never mind the clients. Never mind the bills. NEVER MIND. AF WAS LATE. OMG. OMG. OMG.
I reverted to the days of toilet paper burn
I reverted to the days of wearing white pants daring her to show up
I reverted to emailing and texting my best friend every five minutes obsessing over when she might show
days passed.
NO AF.
And then, one evening she appeared. 3 weeks late and not a moment too soon. By that time I was having a nervous breakdown and was desperately behind on the laundry (what did the laundry matter, I was only wearing white jeans — who cares if the kids have clean clothes — AF was late!!) and returning client calls (you guys understand, that much I know).
How do I feel about all this? Those trusty old homework assignments helped. The visualizations helped. But honestly, aside from re-living a part of my life long since buried in my memory banks, visualizations and homework assignments aside, I am sad. I am sad about the promise that her disappearing act presented and the possibility that perhaps my dreams were being fulfilled. I am also relieved, because as much as I wanted what her absence meant, I also wasn’t ready for it. My family isn’t ready for it. My checkbook isn’t ready for it. As sad and depressed as I have been, I knew that she needed to be here now. I knew that her arrival was right and perfect. Was she late for a reason? Of course she was. But it wasn’t because I was PG (or maybe I was). It was perfect in the lessons I learned from it and the fact that I came face to face with long buried demons. I can now release those demons. For the first time ever in my life, thanks to my homework assignments and all those visualizations, sad or not for what I went through the past few weeks I now know in my heart, with a belief so strong that no demon, no memory, no homework assignment can shake it; I am a fertile woman. Thank you AF for being late because now I have a faith and belief in my body for the first time.
So when my family is ready, when my checkbook is ready, when the E-Book is done and when my next big adventure into the land of family building (which I am about to announce so stay tuned) is ready, I will hold my head high and walk through the doors of my fertility clinic ready to pick an egg donor and ready to show the world that I am finally, fearlessly, able to produce and bear life. I may be too old to use my own eggs but the rest of me works just fine. Finally. Healed.
So, I hope Robyn will forgive me for being a little late with my homework, and I hope tomorrow to spend some time on the E-Book and on my big adventure. And I hope you don’t mind the late emails. I had some demons to slay and some visualizations to attend to. AF was late, and I know the next time she’s late . . . it will be for real and it will stick . . . 🙂
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