Here’s the trade-off: at 9 a.m. the following morning, my doorbell rang. It was our kraamzorg (probably best described as a “postnatal nurse.”) This is the woman who would come to our home every day for the next week from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to teach us how to use a baby. She’d show us how to feed my daughter, dress her, change her, bathe her and put her to sleep. She’s the one we’d turn to when we needed to ask, “Is this normal?” When our confidence dipped and we started to realize we had no clue what we were doing, she was the person who’d assure us, “you’re a natural at this!”To be honest, I was lucky, too: my mother did this for me (and we had a nurse come to our house the day after Baby Leopard's birth--the best sort of medical care is the kind that comes to your bedside). I think it's pretty essential that everyone have someone to do this for them.
But, wait – there’s more. Our kraamzorg also did the laundry, vacuumed, bought groceries, made lunch and, best of all, put clean sheets on the bed every day. She was here, too, to check out my stitches and make sure I was on the path to recovery.
~ I think you all know that I love letters. I really liked this; I thought that the audio added a lot--it captured opening an envelope and unfolding a letter. There's also an excellent disjunct between the French, which I can't understand, and the emotions contained in the letter, which I can. I guess some of the props might be a little precious.
~ I love little fruit and vegetable stands and market set-ups, but I never thought that was because there's some art behind them (and fonts, Ilana!).
~ How great is this? Her voice! I'm thinking a lot about her at the moment.
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