My tattoo captures it all.
My tattoo captures it all.
In the Spirit of Homebirth is an expression of true collaboration. This project, from its inception, has been a weaving together of a wonderfully women-centered, storied web that has become its own in a nexus of connections and overlaps. I am indebted to all of the people who openly shared their stories with me. To all of you whose stories are included here—and to those of you whose stories were sadly unable to be included, as there was simply not enough room—thank you. Your contributions, your honesty, and your enthusiasm allowed this beautiful book to materialize! I am deeply grateful that you trusted me to share your experiences.
I am indebted to my partner Paddy and daughter Similkameen for their continual inspiring presence in my life . . . and for teaching me that motherhood is wholly different from what I ever dreamed it to be! Without you, the seeds of this book would never have been planted.
To Ina May Gaskin, who inspired me, upon my first reading of Spiritual Midwifery at the age of sixteen, to further trust the power of the female body. Thank you for empowering me with the knowledge of what a natural birth could be. Eight years later, your words helped root my own pregnancy and labor: potently, organically, and spiritually!
Thank you to my two editors at Seven Stories Press, Jesse Ruddock and Crystal Yakacki. Jesse, thank you for your attention to detail and your seamless entry into this process. Crystal, thank you for your care, your vision, and your unwavering faith in this project! It truly is an understatement when I say that it has been an absolute pleasure and delight working with you.
In Deep Gratitude . . .
May the voices in these stories speak for themselves . . .
BRONWYN PREECE lives off-the-grid in a solar and water-wheel-powered house that overlooks the Salish Sea, with her part-ner, daughter, three horses, and cat. Her passion for expression marries art with activism—melding ecological, social, and political engagement with performance and writing. A site-specific, improvisational artist, she holds an MA and BFA in Applied Theater and is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Huddersfield. She is the pioneer of earthBODYment and became Canada’s first certified teacher of Action Theater™. She is the author of Gulf Islands Alphabet (Simply Reads Books, 2012) and of the forthcoming children’s book Off-the-Grid Kid. She has a chapter in Performing Motherhood (Demeter Press, 2014), among other publications. All of Bronwyn’s work focuses on connection to place and interdependence—interrogating the dichotomies between culture and nature, self and environment. She has performed at World Stage Design, facilitates workshops internationally, and works with communities and within classrooms to engage students with timely issues through the arts. She served two terms in local politics as the youngest woman ever elected to her post with the Islands Trust, the municipal-level government for the Gulf Islands of BC (2002–2008). Bronwyn can also be frequently spotted frolicking with the kale in her garden, fermenting batches of sauerkraut and kombucha, wildcrafting nettles from the woods, or shamelessly hugging trees . . .
Learn more about Bronwyn at www.bronwynpreece.com