I've been invited...

Invited to witness a miracle...

What do you say to that? How do you turn that down? Read on and tell me what you would do, if in my humble shoes...

The Admin for our business unit is pregnant... very pregnant, so pregnant that she's almost ready to not be pregnant anymore...

She has humored me the last few months... and on top of that been very nice to me,, she's worked at extending the hand of friendship over and over to a person who is so very cautious when it comes to letting people in...

She has answered all my questions,,, dealt with the envy,,, of a 41 year old woman who is facing the hard facts that motherhood (at least biological motherhood) is slipping away month by month. Dealt with the envy of a woman who was adopted as an infant and has wanted nothing more than to experience that amazing connection that a woman develops with her child before it even takes it's first breath... When the baby started kicking, she made a point of coming to my desk and not only telling me,, but in later weeks when it could be felt by someone other than her, placing my hand in just the right place so I could feel it too... And like me, she doesn't like people in her space,,, so she was doing this for me...

So today, she came in after her weekly appointment,,, and let us know it would be her last day. At the risk of saying too much (but really at this point the boundaries are at their limits anyway),,, she was 2 centimeters and 50%.... So she happily sat through our luncheon,, and the shower later in the afternoon,, and diligently worked to get everything she could documented, filed, saved and sent to clients... All the while I sat in awe, watching, realizing this one woman was about to officially become two separate people...

During lunch as everyone was talking I could see her grimace, and suck in a quick breath, and then slowly let it out, looking around to see if anyone else noticed, then looking at me and smiling.... making fun of me when I asked if she was OK... I could here her all afternoon taking these breaths, and when I would ask if she was OK,, she would say " yes, I'm just having trouble breathing for some reason",,, cuz you're in labor maybe ???!!!! and she just laughs,,, saying she still has time, no worries...

And then it happens,,, on the way to the break room or from the break room or in the break room,,,, I am invited,,, invited to be in the delivery room... invited to be there, at this intensely intimate private moment. Initially I just laugh it off,, make some crude joke about not knowing her well enough to be in such close proximity to her in such an exposed state (trust me, much cruder than that)... and then I start thinking about it... And as we talk about it, and I ask if she's serious,,, she says what I am thinking, in a kind and honest way, that only a friend could...

Do you want to go through life and not witness child birth at least once?

As I typed this out and read it back,,, I realized there really is no dilemma... If women can block out the pain of labor and delivery once they have seen this other human they have created,,, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to block out the 'visuals' and potential emotional scarring from seeing a coworkers, I guess more accurately, a friends, 'stuff' , when I remember that I have witnessed a miracle.

And it all comes down to timing,,, if junior doesn't decide to vacate by Monday morning at 8:00 I may have to forfeit...