nursing my babies

I just read a post by Adrienne, that reminded me of when my sons were babies. I breastfed them, in fact I nursed them for a long time. I think Ray was four before he totally weaned himself. At the point he finally stopped, he was only nursing occasionally, at night, when he was upset, and when he needed comforting. My mother showed great concern that he would never stop nursing, she would ask every time we talked. I think she thought it would continue into his Junior High years.

As relieved as she was when he weaned himself, I was sad. It had been a special connection for us. It provided me with as much comfort as it did him. I had nursed him everywhere, in the store, at the park, at Cub Scout meetings for my older son, most of the time, no one even knew. Our culture is so hung up about our bodies. Innocent and natural things are viewed as being sexual. There are taboos that exist that are based solely on people's comfort levels. In many other countries and cultures, nursing is a natural and expected act and nursing until a child is 4 or 5 is the norm and not the exception. I could get all preachy here and tell you about all the benefits of breastfeeding, from immunities to nutrition, but I won't. I will say that the mother-child bond that can be established through nursing your baby is wonderful. I do understand the difficulties that many American mothers encounter when trying to nurse.

Adrienne's post and accompanying pictures did awaken a small ache inside of me. I do miss the days of having a baby root and suckle at my breast. I miss feeling my milk let down and knowing I had everything my baby needed. As a mother, it was probably the only time I was sure I was doing everything right. I associate comfort and sweetness with those memories. I am glad I never succumbed to the pressure and shame that our culture tried to impose on me. Progress is not better than nature.