ABSTRACT
However much I have learned about God from books, lectures, and early life experiences, I have learned even more about God, creation, and humankind from being a parent. Prior to giving birth, I knew to expect pain as part of labor and delivery, but, probably like most women the first time around, I had no anticipation of the ferocity of the birth process. Contrary to what romantics would have us believe, there was nothing gentle or pristine about it. It was raw, crude, and awe-inspiring. The force of life breaking through amidst a deluge of fluid seemed so similar to the way I imagined the creation of the world. The quaking of land—my body. The rushing forth of seas—the amniotic fluid. The thunderous explosions—my screams. Light emerging from darkness—the baby going forth from the womb-cocoon and bursting into life and exposure. The mother first seeing her baby—Va’yhi Or, “and there was light.” Thus we read in Genesis on the Sabbath of Creation, Shabbat Beresheet. The text then concludes, “And it was good.”
