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"Then the doorbell rang. It was our daughters Chantal and
Celeste back from school. They too came into the room to watch the
birth and could help if they wanted. Chantal decided not to have
a ring side view watch but watched through the part opened dinning
room door. Celeste absolutely loved it. She sponged my forehead
and insisted on watching everything. There would never be any rivalry
or jealousy towards this baby, I thought, they had helped deliver
it!"
I never realised that when a woman is giving birth she has the
strength of ten men. I too felt like ten men but nine of them were
dead. Every time Jane pushed against the side with her legs she
pushed against my chest. (she was sitting in my lap) With each contraction
all the air would be forced out of my lungs and together with the
weight of the water I felt that I was going to start hyperventilating
or something. I laughed to myself and thought "So you wanted
to share the experience of the birth now you've got it pain and
all". It was also amusing the way Celeste kept coming over
and mopping my brow while Jane sweated away unattended. Afterwards
Jane looked fine and as if nothing had happened, everyone said that
I looked like the one who had given birth!
At 4.26 PM the baby arrived. "I put my hands down into the
water and delivered her myself." says Jane proudly "I
took hold of the head when I felt it drop. The midwife was pleased
to see that the baby was now in the correct position and had fully
turned while I was in the water. I gently lifted the baby up through
the surface of the water. It was a beautiful moment, as if time
stood still. A holy moment. I was ecstatic as I pulled the baby
upwards as if in slow motion- it was a girl. The moment she was
out of the water she began to cry and I started laughing-she was
perfect in every detail. We'd suffered so much and now here was
our little baby."
The girls were amazed. We thought that they might have been squeamish
but they really loved watching the birth. "Well done"
said my mum, arriving only seconds after the birth. She was the
first to hold the baby. "This is how a birth should be"
says Jane "with your family gathered round you. I climbed out
of the tub to deliver the afterbirth in private. (much to the disappointment
of Celeste who wanted to see more) I had a few stitches but it was
remarkable that I had needed no gas or painkillers throughout. The
girls eagerly nursed baby Danielle, and we all had a nice cup of
tea. We needed it as it was a very hot day, the tubs water was 100
degrees, it was about 80 outside, and the whole building was as
hot and steamy as a sauna.
"There was a wonderful atmosphere in that house that day."
says Jane "It was very special. The doctor and midwife looked
all flaked out. Already I was thinking how I'd like to do it all
over again. A water birth at home is a truly spiritual experience.
I didn't feel tired but they made me have a bath and go to bed.
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"I lay in bed I looked at baby Danielle
snuggled in my arms. Here was this beautiful darling little baby with
lots of hair and so perfect in every way. I truly believed that she
was a child of God. My Danielle. My water baby. I was so pleased that
at last our child had arrived. When I looked into her brilliant blue
eyes' says Jane 'I knew that all the suffering was worthwhile.'
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But the suffering was by no means over. A few days after Danielle
was born we received papers from the courts telling us that both
of our ex-partners were filling for custody of the step children.
Jane's ex-husband was engaged to an American multi millionairess
so money was no object. Meanwhile my ex-wife was on legal aid. We
fought tooth and nail but the financial consequences of the long
drawn out court cases were crippling.
I can't go into details but it hurt us all to see the new family
broken up. I had struggled for 9 years on my own bringing Celeste
up from 16 months old and making tremendous sacrifices to ensure
she was all right. Jane had also made similar sacrifices over Justin
and Chantal
My advertising agency, which I had toiled to establish over 15
years, began to suffer because of the time I had to spend in court
and in preparing to go to court. I missed critical meetings and
couldn't follow up sales leads. Instead of writing quotes I wrote
affidavits. Turn-over plummeted and costs rose. Then I lost my three
most important accounts within a week. The business collapsed.
As I watched the receiver tow away my Jaguar car I clearly heard
the voice of my 'dead' Grandmother. 'Don't worry Craig. It's only
things. Go forward now and do what you know you've got to do.'
Somehow we kept our house and survived. In the space of a year
our world had changed beyond recognition. No more champagne lunches
entertaining clients at French restaurants; no more trips for Jane
on the QE2, no more luxuries. But deep in our hearts we knew that
these things didn't matter. Spiritually we had both already decided
to dedicate our lives to the service of Spirit. Now was our chance
to prove it in cold reality.
The decks had been cleared and the stage was set for a new beginning.
In a few years we'd been through some momentous times. Nothing much
more could be taken away from us. The only way was up.
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