She closes her eyes for a long second then opens them - staring off somewhere, she takes a deep breath, licks her lips, untenses her muscles, feels her feet on the ground, and finally hears her midwife asking her to reach down and pull up this new wet baby into her arms. She looks at her baby for just a second. Then she looks around the room at each person's face who witnessed her birth this baby as if to confirm that it really did and really is happening. Her wondering eyes are met with gentle smiles. Her most surreal moment. She is somewhere else and time is suspended. It's like she is almost between this world and another just for few moments. There may not be another time in life that a woman is here in this place. She is slowly brought back to this world, trying to wrap her head around what just took place in and through her physical body and what she overcome mentally to bring her baby earthside. She says it again a few more times over the next 30 minutes or so, believing it a little more each time.
Every time I get to watch another woman experience this, every time I get to be there smiling at her, standing in awe at her amazing power that she wasn't quite sure she had until this very moment, proud of her, happy for her, watching her realize how awesome she is and that she can do ANYTHING after having done THAT, giving her HER moment...well, there is just nothing like it.