The Sling Walk
Jennifer C.
MI USA
From: NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 18 No. 3, May-June 2001, p. 94-95
I love to tell friends about
all the wonderful support I've received over the years from my local
La Leche League Group. I can wax rhapsodic about the weeks of food brought
to me after the birth of my youngest son, the countless hours of support
during the "sleepless years," the warmth and camaraderie of all those
Thursday morning meetings. I just love to share stories of how LLL was
there for me as I stumbled down the road of motherhood. So imagine my
utter delight when I could be there for my good friend, Glenda.
Glenda had a very unusual
situation. . One day, after she had taken a walk with her baby in a
sling, she found an anonymous note in her mailbox. It read something
like this: "I don't know why you have to carry your baby in a bag. Can't
you just get a stroller for it?"
Well, when Glenda showed
me the note, my first reaction was to laugh, right out loud. I mean,
who was this crazy person with nothing better to do than harass the
good parents of the world? But I quickly realized that this meant more
to Glenda. It was hurtful to be so judged by a neighbor, someone who
surely didn't understand the choices Glenda made in parenting. Glenda
felt uneasy at the thought of some unknown critic watching her as she
went about her business.
Then our good friend, Sandy,
thought of a lovely solution. She organized a "sling walk." Several
of us met at Glenda's house one morning and paraded all around the neighborhood
with our children (from babies to toddlers) in slings. We had a great
potluck lunch afterward and the older children played in the yard. It
was a beautiful day in so many ways. It occurred to me that this was
La Leche League at its finest. It is our true community when perhaps
our geographical community doesn't fit so well. When we attend an LLL
meeting, we're comfortably surrounded by supportive and encouraging
women. Once that might have happened in neighborhoods, but now you may
have to intentionally create that likeminded community.
We hear at every Series Meeting
that LLL is based on mother-to-mother support. I feel so blessed to
have been on both sides. I surely relied on all the support offered
to me these last few years, but I am perhaps more grateful to have had
the chance to be there for someone else.
Last updated November 13, 2006 by njb.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:30:12 UTC 2007.
