One thing that has surprised me most about this process of pregnancy is my own struggle with body image. I’ve touched on this in a previous post but I guess it’s a major enough area that it warrants another post.
A number of weeks ago, I was at a conference where singer/songwriter Carolyn Arends was performing. I picked up her book, “We’ve Been Waiting for You” which documents her journey to parenthood. I have to confess, every time I look through the book, I am brought to tears. Many of her thoughts resonate deeply with me.
One of my favorites is this: “Go ahead, I whisper to my child-in-waiting, take all the room you need. Increase my waist. Expand my heart. Enlarge my soul. Grow me up.”
It challenges me to let go of my previously tightly held “ideal” body image to welcome something even better. When I am tempted to ruminate over whether my thighs have gotten fatter or if I’ll be able to fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes, Carolyn’s words beckon me to remember that my life and body are now to be given for someone else’s life and well-being. They exhort me to live more selflessly.
I don’t know if I will always struggle with this but when I see the words, “Grow me up,” my heart says, “YES!” and I know it’s all worth it.
On a lighter (heavier?) note, I found an image that expresses how I feel when I try to turn over in bed these days:
Ha.