My first experience of a Mother Blessing was a ceremony I had whilst pregnant with my second child. A group of close female friends and family got together to celebrate my pregnancy with an afternoon of nurturing. My favourite part was sitting in a circle and binding our left wrists with red wool and as each person bound her wrist, she said what she wished for my baby and I.....it really was beautiful.The good intention and love that this ceremony brought out in my friends was so palpable that I felt absolutely treasured and could see a community already waiting for my baby when he arrived into the world.
When he was born and we symbolically broke the wool it made everything somehow more immediate: this is it, we have now welcomed another person into our community. I grew great strength from that little piece of wool in the months leading up to the birth.
My other experience with a Mother Blessing was when my friend had a Blessing which involved each person giving her a bead to create a necklace for her to wear during her pregnancy. It was quite amazing, I remember the electricity going off as we started passing the beads around to bless them and we meditated pretty much silently in the darkness while we sent Mother and Baby (who's now 4 months old) love and good wishes. The lights came on half an hour later in time for supper.....very interesting!
Later the group painted a mural. The idea was for Mother to focus on the images as she laboured and draw strength from those who love her. It was a really moving experience working co-operatively with others in this way, and the mural was stunning in its originality.
We finished off with the all important meal roster...as Kelly wrote in her Blessing Way post yesterday, it's a wonderful, practical idea. Afterall, isn't that what most new mothers need, someone to show they care about you, and to bring around emergency food supplies when you've been pacing the floorboards half the night? I know I did...
Cynthia Marston
PICTURE - RED WOOL - GOOGLE IMAGE
