Both my husband and I had spent little time with babies or small children, so when we decided to become parents we felt we had entered unfamiliar territory.
My doubts and questions began with the pregnancy. While interviewing a Christian Science nurse about postnatal services, I asked if she could recommend any books to help me. She replied that the only books I'd need would be the Bible and Science and Health. I smiled politely but thought, "What can these books tell me about pregnancy and children? There's no chapter about parenting." I realize now that I had already accepted the belief that birth is essentially a material process.
Holding to that mistaken assumption, I purchased two books about pregnancy to help "guide" me. Each month I would look for the signs indicating a normal pregnancy and would read the list of symptoms considered natural. Soon after reading about each symptom, I would manifest it, but feel comforted by the thought that it was supposedly normal to be feeling ill.
