Community

I need naps more than ever right now, but that makes it all the harder to get one. Because when I lie down to catch some rest, I am suddenly consumed by the urgency to 'hurry and fall asleep! Before a kid wakes up! There's only an hour before E will be up! Hurry! Sleep! Fall! Now!' Not surprisingly, this isn't the most effective way to waltz into la-la land.

Anyoo, while contemplating the issue of napping, I thought about the person I know who has a supreme talent for napping. Did you know that it was a talent? When I first moved in with Nancy Pants* (a year after we met in grad school and quickly became bosom buddies), I remember learning about her napping talent. We were supposed to go out to dinner and were within 30 minutes of leaving. She says to me, 'Is it okay if I run take a nap really quick before we go?" I looked at her as if she'd said, "Is it okay if I hike the Appalachian trail really quick before we go?" because that is about how likely a 'quick nap' and an on-time departure seemed to go together. "No, I promise," she said, "just a 15 minute power nap. I'll set my alarm." And, true to her word, she was up and ready to go on time. Amazing. If I only have 15 minutes to sleep, you can guarantee I'll spend them thinking about sleeping, but not doing it.

So it was appropriate that while I was laying on the couch the other day, trying to sleep, a memory of Nance is what finally helped me slide into dreamland.
My mind was walking down memory lane, and turning over my medical school memories of the hospital where I delivered both my kiddos. One in particular made me smile.

Nance was getting married soon and had ordered her wedding dress from a store out west. It had arrived that day and she needed to drop it off at the seamstress the next day if the alterations would be finished on time. We had discussed whether she would take her skirt 'mermaid style' or not, but I needed to see it to know. The problem? I was on my surgical rotation, and on call that night. Bummer.

But then she said, "Can I bring it and show it to you there?" Huzzah!
And that's exactly what she did. I met her by the back entrance of the hospital, and we snuck her (large white garment bag and all) up to my call room. I willed my pager into silence and she tried on her dress. She looked gorgeous in it, even amidst (all the more because of?) all the 80's hospital decor and beige walls. We debated the possibilities for her skirt and then I escorted her back out the way she came.

The memory still makes me smile. She brought her wedding dress to the hospital! And tried it on! Just to make me feel like my work life didn't always interfere with real life! And I think if there were any drama surrounding the incident (there was not), it might have made a nice little scene on Grey's Anatomy.

But really, thinking about it just made me grateful to have such lovely friends. Cause I do, and I could write a post about each of them.

I've thought a lot about the need for community since the birth of Finn. Friends, family and acquaintances have served us so generously (meals, kind words, babysitting, photograph taking). No, "let me know if you need anything," but "I'm going to bring dinner tomorrow..is that okay?" They've taught me how to serve and how much comfort there is in just knowing that they're there. Because there are times, I know, when the going will get rougher for all of us, and then we will be most grateful for the communities we've forged (or the ones that we didn't know we'd forged but which appear in our time of need). I believe that God didn't want us to be alone on our journey here. He knew there would be times when we just could not go it alone. And sometimes happy events(a baby) and sometimes sad events (illness in the family) illuminate these golden threads of connection we've sown so that we remember that they're there and that what matters is love and service.

So here's to the little moments that bind us together: to the dresses in hospital rooms, to the late night chats, to the dinners brought, and to the laughs we've shared. To the kids we've hugged, and to the e-mails we've sent, and to the congrats we've given. To the weddings we've attended, to the blogs we've commented on, and to the prayers we've offered for each other.

I've never felt more what a blessing community is--whether near or far, virtual or real-time--or more of a desire to continue building one.

So, to my community: thank you. You make my heart so happy.



*Things you should know about Nance: She is brilliant. She loves dark chocolate. She is an amazing photographer (has studied the artform most of her life) and has documented most of my major milestones since we met. She loves people so well and always gives them the benefit of a doubt. If she tells you about her friends and family, you will walk away thinking everyone she knows is beautiful and smart and wonderful. It took me a while to realize she describes everyone in these terms. And it's not insincere. She sees everyone through the best lens possible, finding their most desirable traits and celebrating them. It's a gift and I love her for it.

All of these photos were from her lens:

Engagement Photos:






E's birth:


E's baby blessing:


E at six months:


Pregnant with Finn:


And she just took newborn shots of Finn as well!

A parting shot: can you blame me for being totally in love?