ABSTRACT
To be near is also a ‘feeling close’ and ‘felt belonging’ to the gathering. Being near to birth, as Pat [mother] describes, is more than being physically present. To be in the world is always and already to be with-other. Ontically it may be possible to die alone but to be born is always to be gathered with-others, even if it is just mother and newborn. There is a gathering of others at birth who come together for a variety of purposes. For some turning to joy at birth can be difficult. Birth is essentially a ‘we-world’, a world gathered into belongingness and togetherness. The occasion of birth however it unfolds is always with-other and attuned collectively. When this is fractured there is unease. The strength of others gathers at birth in a seemingly reciprocal manner as relationships are revealed as central to joy’s awakening.
