Our Babies, Ourselves

In this article the author describes the practices of mothers raising children. Not only does she discuss the roles of women in the culture, but the impact those roles play on the children.

I thought the article was great. I liked the way the author described the way the mothers held or not held the babies, the way the children were fed, and the roles of the other mothers (or lack of).

Parts of the article made me a little upset though. I thought it was trying to stress that we should slow down and take care of our children "more". After reading the entire article I felt like I had been insulted all the way through, and then someone slapped a Band-Aid on it, to mend my feelings, at the end. I know that in our culture it is important for the parent(s) to work, and I know it mentioned that in the article. I just thought that it was in our faces trying to show us something that we already know( to slow down). I think most Americans would agree that we should/could use some more time to relax, but this is what we've become.
To put my anger aside though, It did change my perspective on “coddling” a baby. I am one of those who aspire to just let them cry. After reading this article I thought that it probably isn’t all bad to hold them just a little bit longer.