Holland Moms

At the new church I attended this past Sunday I snagged a book with a list of different groups who meet outside of church. I came across a group called, "Holland Moms" and immediately knew what kind of group this was. Some of you might have already read this, but for those who have not please read this poem.

WELCOME TO HOLLAND
byEmily Perl Kingsley.
c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......
When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

This group is filled with women just like myself who were expecting to go on that trip to Italy but ended up in Holland.

I was a little unsure about going since it was at a restaurant but sometimes you have to just take that leap of faith and do things that are outside your comfort zone. Well I'm so glad I did because I had the best time. We stayed for 2 1/2 hours and the time literally flew by. They meet once a month for dinner to talk about whatever is going on in your life. We talked about feedings, surgeries, doctors, therapy, respite care, you name it. My favorite thing about this group of women is they are all Chrisitian women. I am already excited to go again next month! :) Plus, getting out of the house for some me time felt SO GOOD!