Interview and Giveaway with Author, Teacher and Childbirth Activist, Rahima Baldwin Dancy

UPDATE!~! 4/9/10 - Congratulations to Mama Ruck for winning this amazing giveaway! Her comment was randomly chosen this evening. An email has been sent to you with details on how to claim your 'prize'!!!



I am so very excited to introduce Rahima Baldwin Dancy in this one-on-one interview with Little Acorn Learning. Rahima is a pioneer in the Waldorf Educational movement in the United States and such an inspiration to me as well as many other mothers, fathers and teachers.



Rahima has graciously offered $50 Off her upcoming Conference or a DVD of your choice from www.waldorfinthehome.com - the winner will be randomly selected from our comment section by next Friday, April 9th. Be sure to check back on our blog often to see results!



Rahima is one of the leading interpreters of principles of Waldorf Early Childhood Education through her book, You Are Your Child's First Teacher. She trained at the Waldorf Institute before teaching Kindergarten at the Rudolf Steiner School of Ann Arbor and leading a Waldorf home preschool there. She currently is Rocky Mountain regional training Director of LifeWays North America and is a co-teacher at Rainbow Bridge LifeWays Program, along with her two daughters. Together, they care for up to twelve children each day in a mixed-age program for 1-5 year olds.

Rahima is the Founder and President of Informed Family Life and has been a childbirth activist since writing Special Delivery and Pregnant Feelings in the 1980s. Before moving back to Boulder, she was a primary midwife and co-director of The Birth Center in Dearborn, Michigan for nine years. Then she lived in Sacramento and took care of her mother and mother-in-law for six years and completed a Masters in Gerontology.

In addition to LifeWays, Rahima continues to be active in parent education through the annual “Waldorf in the Home” conferences she does in California, the sale of recordings from the conferences, and writing on her blog, www.waldorfinthehome.com. Together with her husband, Agaf Dancy, she has raised four children who are now 30-40 years old.

Eileen: Your life work speaks to me on such a deep level and I am so grateful to have you here so we can learn more about who you are. Can you tell me a little bit about your childhood and how you came to midwifery, Waldorf Education and the parenting services that you offer through Waldorf in the Home?



Rahima: The question that has guided all of my work is, “How can we live so we don’t stifle the spirituality inherent in life?” This has progressed through work with birth, early childhood, parenting, the elder years, dying—and back to work with young children again. I feel that by holding that question—and by being willing to say “yes”—I became open to certain inspirations and connections. To me, all of these callings are part of the same fabric of lifespan work. I joke that God said, “There is this information that needs to get out on the planet. Rahima has a big mouth. We’ll tell her!”



Eileen: Looking back on your own experience as a mother, what would you say were some of your biggest challenges that you faced? What advice can you offer women who are either just beginning their journey through motherhood or are hoping to regroup and approach motherhood now as a spiritual journey?



Rahima: I tell mothers that “I made every mistake in the book. That’s why I wrote the book” [First Teacher]. I was really lost as a young mother, and yet I carried the question, “Somebody must know more about children than I do!” That wouldn’t have been hard, but I was looking for someone who was spiritually realized, who turned his or her attention to raising children and to education. This led me first to look into Montessori’s work, and then to Waldorf education, which resonated so much more strongly with my whole being.



The principles I learned in the Waldorf teacher training completely transformed my home life! The most important and transformational ideas for me were coming to understand child development (children are not little adults), that young children learn through movement and imitation, and that the temperaments are such valuable keys. I think there’s much more support now for mothering as a spiritual path. Mothering Magazine and my book paved the way, but look now at the number of other books and websites such as Little Acorn Learning!



Eileen: I understand that you do work with the Lifeways trainings as well as help your daughters with an in-home Lifeways program. This is of particular interest to me as I also run a nature-based childcare program in my home and we are a Self-Affiliate of LifeWays. Can you tell us more about Rainbow Bridge, your daily rhythm and how you (and your daughters) manage running a business and caring for your own daily responsibilities and other work? When do you find the time for your home care, your self care and others in your life?



Rahima: The LifeWays training puts a lot of emphasis on balance and self-care for the mother or childcare provider. The LifeWays work with children also has the advantage that you take life as the curriculum and develop a daily, weekly and seasonal schedule that breathes. My daughter, who is 35 and who has the program in her home, says, “This is how I would want to live my life, if I had a brood of children: gardening, cooking, playing, eating, napping in the afternoons. And to think people pay me for doing this!”



Which brings up a couple of major differences from mothering—I think being paid (i.e. valued) is a major difference that keeps away a certain discouragement. It also encourages one to focus and be present with the children, instead of thinking of and trying to do a dozen different things at once. And not being 24/7 is another a huge difference from mothering—as “Oma” (German for “Grandma”), I’m able to have a “rest of my life” that doesn’t involve children. When you’` 1re a mother, it’s not easy to carve out time for yourself and your other interests! I think the isolation of the nuclear family is crazy making in that regard and that women need to band together—and to adopt grandparents and aunties if they’re away from their own families.

Eileen: Your book - You Are Your Child’s First Teacher - is often one of the first ways that mothers and fathers are given a glimpse into Waldorf Education. What inspired you to write the book? How did its publication change your life?



Rahima: I had already written two books on birth and had two children and two stepchildren when my husband and I took the Waldorf teacher training. At one of the lectures, the Director talked about the need to reach out and make a bridge to the parents who were looking for alternatives. I inwardly said, “Oh, I’ll do that!” and something like a bubble around us went “Pop!” My husband and I looked at each other and were quite startled. It took me seven years to learn enough about Waldorf education and to write the book.



At that time (1980), the Waldorf early childhood work was much more developed in Germany and the rest of Europe. In America, the only books were translations of German pediatricians from the 1930s, who were far too dogmatic for American audiences. So it was interesting that, although I hadn’t spoken a word of German in 15 years since being a German major in college, I was able to go to Hannover and attend the conferences on Waldorf early childhood education each year and be nourished by what was going on there.



Writing First Teacher was a lot harder than the books on birth I had written, because I had to balance not being too esoteric with not turning Steiner’s ideas into pablum. It was excruciating, and I finally had to lock myself in a friend’s basement every day until I finished. Then I held my breath when giving copies of the galleys to both Steiner and mainstream readers. When they both liked it, I knew I had accomplished the task I had been given.



It’s interesting that when the book was published, I was finished with that cycle of studying, teaching and writing about Waldorf early childhood. I returned to midwifing, which I had put aside for nearly ten years—although I did continue putting on one to three parenting conferences a year under the titles of “The Magical Years” and then “Waldorf in the Home.”



Eileen: You have an amazing conference coming up at the end of this month entitled - Mothering and Spirituality, Resourcing Feminine Wisdom. Can you tell me more about your vision for this conference and what you hope mothers will take with them when they leave?



Rahima: This theme has grown out my realization several years ago that I was somehow not in touch with the deep sources of feminine wisdom and renewal, despite having devoted my life to the caring professions: midwifing, mothering, caring for young children, eldercare and hospice. I saw that my pattern was to be of service and to take on more and more until I didn’t have a postage stamp to stand on and dissolved in a puddle. What I wanted was a real experience of permeability and breathing, an answer to the question, “Where does our strength and our renewal come from?” (While self-care and boundaries can be good intermediate steps, they’re not what got Mother Theresa through the day.) So I’ve been on a mission to explore the feminine aspect of the divine, to get into my body, to explore what feminine wisdom in spiritual life might look like….and it’s been a great ride!



This conference is designed to share some of the people and approaches that have inspired me—and to provide mothers with a weekend of inspiration and renewal. My hope is that the inner transformation and practical suggestions that can come out of such a gathering will enrich and enliven their lives and their mothering or care giving.



Eileen: Like other working mothers, finding the time for myself is often a challenge. I often squeeze in a few moments of writing, yoga, prayer or art as I can throughout my week…. How can parents and caregivers stay connected to their spiritual side when there is so little time for silence or meditative work throughout their day working with young children? What are some ways in which YOU regroup and connect to your source and/or spiritual side?



Rahima: I think one key to staying connected comes out of knowing yourself. If you are reminded of Spirit through the mind, then read inspiring books and short meditations. If you are a devotional person, then set up an altar—even a little nook by your dishwashing sink. And pray. If you are someone who remembers through dance or movement, take up “kitchen yoga” to supplement your other yoga practice or do a short wave in the “Five Rhythms” tradition to shake out the cobwebs.



I have to confess that I am terrible at regular practices, but I’m pretty good at irregular ones. Right now I’m focusing on “releasing.” It’s like releasing tension after each contraction in labor—tension is not going to not sneak in! So you get the opportunity again and again. Similarly, I am releasing bodily tension whenever I find it, releasing anger or judgment every time I can, releasing into the arms of the Divine Mother whenever I’m tired or harried or impatient. Having spent years doing very masculine practices of “struggling” with characteristics that “weren’t spiritual,” I’m finding it quite refreshing.



Eileen: One of the themes that really stands out for me with this particular conference is the focus on “resourcing” feminine wisdom. How do you feel as women we can seek out feminine mentors, heroes and inspiration as we move along this parenting journey? How can we ensure that our tween and teen daughters find positive role models in our culture nowadays? Can you tell me more about some of your own feminine heroes or guides and how they influenced your life and work?



Rahima: I have found that when you carry those questions, you’ll be guided to your own answers. I didn’t start carrying those questions until a few years ago—and then I was lead to people that I’m bringing in to present at this conference. For example, Nancy Poer has long been one of my “older sisters.” Her youngest (of six) was about the same age as my oldest, and she has been another pioneer in the Waldorf movement from way back. So we have always been able to share and laugh along the way, calling ourselves, “The Erma Bombecks of the Waldorf movement.” When my father died, she came down the mountain and taught me how to do natural after-death care, sharing the Threshold Circle work she had carried for so long in the Sacramento area.



While Nancy and I go way back, I’m just getting to know Regina Sara Ryan and her work, described in The Woman Awake. Feminine Wisdom for Spiritual Life. When I was given this book, I was so excited to “meet” a sister who was on the same path that I am and who spoke the same language! But she has been carrying on this conscious exploration of the feminine 20 years longer than I have and has much to share! So I put together monthly conference calls with her and invited her to keynote at the conference so I’d have more time to talk with her. It’s been inspiring!



Carol Flinder’s book, At the Root of This Longing. Reconciling a Spiritual Hunger and a Feminist Thirst, inspired me to try to weave together the strands of mothering, spirituality and feminism—something I’ve been working on since I was pregnant 38 years ago and got laughed out of the first feminist bookstore in the Bay Area for asking about books on pregnancy and birth. To me, what could be more of a women’s issue than birth and mothering??? Carol has also agreed to present at the conference.



And then I had to include the LifeWays work and founder Cynthia Aldinger, because LifeWays is all about bringing mindfulness to the daily tasks of being with young children and to creating a home or home-like environment in which they can flourish.

Eileen: What do you feel are the true needs of young children and their parents in this time we live in? As a society - as mothers, as fathers, as childcare providers and teachers - what can WE do to make a difference and ensure we are serving the spiritual needs of humanity in this day and age?

Rahima: I feel that children really need to be recognized in their individuality and allowed to bring in something new. While leaving them in freedom to follow their own star when they are young adults, we need to provide a solid foundation that includes good habits, manners, academic skills, and unstructured time in which to be children, all of which will help leave their inborn creativity, spiritual knowing and yearning intact.



For us as adults, the task is remembering who we really are and releasing any illusion of separation or “otherness.” Again and again and again…..

__________



The monthly conference calls with Rahima and Regina Sara Ryan, author of The Woman Awake, will be going on throughout 2010. You can join at any time. For more information, click HERE



The conference “Spirituality and Mothering—Resourcing Feminine Wisdom” will take place April 24-25 at Sacramento Waldorf School in Fair Oaks, CA. It is sponsored by Rahima and Informed Family Life. See http://www.waldorfinthehome.com/