Uncle Frank.  Ya, he's my favorite.  Especially when cousin Leo joins in.  They are a good team.  If things get real stressful at any point Aunt IV is real quick to jump in and give a boost!  If all else fails and things need a little rest, well, cousin Trendelenburg is a good one.  Everything can be managed better when he's around.

Family reunion?  Not quite.  This is the little picture that made me laugh while thinking through complications in birth.  Frank, well, that's the best kind of breech with the least amount of risk.  Leo...Leopold's maneuvers are used for palpation of the baby in-utero.  IV, well, if you've ever been sick (or surgery) enough to be admitted to the hospital you've most likely experienced one of these. They are wonderful things though that make treatment and care sooo much easier ad quicker.  Trendelenburg, well, it isn't a place, it's a position.  This position puts ones rear end up in with the head down.

Oh, usually birth is ok.  It is a normal process created by God and is usually a moment to praise Him for His creativity and goodness.  Yet, we all know this world is a place of suffering and sometimes things just don't go as planned.  So, one must always prepare for the worst.

Thinking of birth trauma's also makes me think of life.  Sometimes our lives just don't go the way we planned or we're seeking a little respit for healing and refreshment, yet it's just one thing after another.  We know God has a plan.  And, it may be that through the tears, the hurt, the trials, we just hang on and hope in Whom we know we can hope that there is good in store.

There are a couple people serving with us here that are going through some pretty major trials.  We all know them, it seems to be a reminder in the moments that life seems to good that it's not forever and it really isn't good...but we do have a hope of eternity!!

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.  In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials." 1 Peter 1:3-6