What is the importance of birth stories to grandkids?
When they were much younger, my grand darlings would beg me to tell them stories, whether we were sitting around the house, waiting in a doctor’s office, driving in the car — almost anywhere. Their favorite stories, of course, were about the day they were born.
During both of my pregnancies, almost every female who came into my orbit was willing to share the details of one or more of their deliveries and also had at least one or more pieces of advice to offer.
These treasured stories and experiences are important because they confirm what we can now remember as a time of joy, a time when we — as women — were doing our bit to sustain the human race.
But birth stories are also important to children and grandchildren.
When my oldest son was three or four, he asked me where we got him — where he came from?
Not ready to give him a lesson in Biology 101, I offered the following: “There is a big, big nursery at the hospital, and when your dad and I decided to have a baby, we went to the nursery. When we got there, the head nurse asked us to come in, look up and down the rows of cribs and decide which baby we would like ... so we went in and began looking into the cribs.
“Some babies had red hair, some had brown eyes. Some were smiling. Some were sleeping. But when we came to your crib, we stopped. You had blonde hair, big blue eyes, you were dressed in a blue gown and you were smiling. You were exactly the baby we wanted and the baby boy we picked. We thought you were perfect and we both loved you as soon as we saw you.
“So, while we finished filling out the papers to take you home, I was able to hold you and you kept a big smile on your face until you fell fast asleep in my arms. Your dad went to get the car, and one of the nursery nurses asked me to sit in a wheel chair while I was holding you. We rode the elevator to the first floor, the nurse and your dad put you in the car seat, made sure your seatbelt was fastened and we took you home that very day — your birthday.”
(Notice I left out the part about the stork.)
As my son became older, I began adding other details as he could understand them.
Stories play a vital role in the growth and development of children and if the stories are about your child or grandchild, that’s even better. Children love being the main character, the center of attention in the story, in the middle of the action.
More specifically, birth stories — or any stories — boost a child’s speaking and listening skills. Stories help your children to develop their language skills and thinking — all parts of the learning process, communication and social interactions. Birth stories also boost a child’s sense of self. Their birth story is their story ... uniquely theirs, unlike anyone else’s.
Children absorb many words, which they would use throughout the first years of their lives.
Whether you tell stories or read them from books, stories also are the ways children learn to communicate their thoughts and feelings.
Numerous times, my own grandchildren wanted to hear what I could remember about the days they were born, and while I am certain their parents had shared their birth stories, these four grand darlings have always been interested in knowing what I saw, heard, said and did on the day they were born.
These stories are popular because each is unique — and each child wants to unique. Their stories stand out. They are individual.