Friendship
All of us at Toronto Family Doulas are certifying with ProDoula. This week, the owners of ProDoula declared that this was Best Friends Week! They are using the opportunity to offer a discount on their trainings when you sign up with a friend. (Hint: We are hosting both a birth doula and a postpartum doula training in Toronto this September! Sign up with a friend and join us!) At TFD, we thought this was a good opportunity to get a little personal. Friendship is a cornerstone from which each of us can build who we are. Amber, Alex, and Meaghan have all written about one of their best friends, and how that friend supports them in their work as a doula.
Amber
My best friend can’t finish my sentences or read my mind, though he often tries; it has yet to work out.
I love difficult physical projects, and he would rather not join me in moving tonnes of stone or dirt, or building a fence. He is a talented writer and game designer, and while I support his work fully, I am not much of a gamer.
The thing is, we compliment one another because of our differences. With my friend, I can be ridiculous or serious; we can debate any topic and either sway one another’s opinions or be okay with disagreeing. We build each other up, with a degree of support that I am so fortunate to have in my life.
My friendship makes me a better doula because I now have an understanding of what it’s like to have someone believe in me completely. My best friend has taught me that unconditional acceptance and encouragement are two of the most wonderful things we can offer one another.
Alex
My best friend is Amber.We met in grade 6 because we sat at the same table in Mrs. Rhodes’ class.Initially, Amber and I kind of hated each other – I don’t really know why, but I’m sure it was serious grade 6 stuff – each complaining about the other to our friends and family and whoever would listen.
Then came tetherball.
I don’t know how I started playing, I’ve never played before or since, but in the fall of grade 6 I fell in love with tetherball. Amber fell in love with it too. Soon we were playing every recess. Then one thing led to another and we became best friends.
In highschool we had separate friend circles, but we remained besties. She would come and swim in my parents’ pool, I went on vacation with her and her parents (and we commiserated over a hatred for her older brother).
It’s really great having a best friend who’s know me so long and well – we never have to explain ourselves to each other. And now, Amber is moving on to another stage of her life – parenthood! I’m putting together a shower for her this weekend to help celebrate her expanding family. I’m so excited to meet Amber as a mother and see her get to know her new baby. I also can’t wait to meet this baby – I already love him or her so much!
Meaghan
I have been blessed in my life with an abundance of friends that are so amazing, they all deserve the title “best friend”. The truth is, I wouldn’t be who I am without all of them. There is one though, that stands out.
My mom.
My entire life, she has encouraged me to be the best that I could be, in whatever situation I found myself. She taught me to be a strong, confident, and fierce business woman. She told me that it was okay to be loud and to ardently defend my beliefs. She taught me to stand up for something, but most of all, to stand up for myself.
On the practical side, she steps in when I am with a client and my own children need someone to pick them up from daycare. She is a listening ear to all my hair-brained ideas, and supports me jumping in with both feet. She is my biggest cheerleader, my loudest cheerleader, and my biggest supporter. She is my best friend, and I would not be the person, mother, or doula that I am, without her friendship.