Throughout my pregnancy I was inundated with birthing and parenting books. You’d think that the lenders would be close friends or family; people who actually know me or have any inkling as to how or where I planned to deliver my child and subsequently raise her. To the contrary – most of the books came from women who don’t know me, like the sweet, albeit mainstream ones who work with my husband or from perfect strangers who happen to reside in our apartment complex. For instance, one day while washing clothes in the communal laundry room downstairs I bumped into my next door neighbor and she slipped me a dog-eared copy of a popular book whose author advises sleep-deprived parents on how to train their newborns to cry themselves into dreamland. She patted my arm, whispering “this book is a wealth of information” as she struggled to pry her screaming toddler’s hand from a dryer door.

 Paging through each book I was given left me feeling dejected. Instinctually, I knew these stiff rules and regulations would have no place in our home, nor would I be able to learn anything of substance from these parenting guidebooks. What I needed to do was to find other women in my community who also trust their inner voices, secure in the fact that raising a child in a loving environment does not necessarily mean having to follow the status quo.

In my 38^th week of pregnancy I met Heather Mariano on MotheringDotCommune. Heather also lives in the Philadelphia suburbs and was working on starting a local Attachment Parenting International chapter. She quickly discovered being a part of API would restrict the group’s conversation to discussions based solely on Attachment Parenting principles. Heather wanted the group to have the freedom to discuss any topic so she withdrew her application. Soon thereafter she met Marie Goodwin, who had started another local group with women she had met in classes at the birthing center where she had hoped to deliver her son. They decided to join forces and created Main Line Moms, designed to be a grassroots organization of local families devoted to holistic living and compassionate parenting.

Since its creation in the summer of 2003 the group has skyrocketed to more than 90 families within the region and now offers a multitude of activities including playgroups, potluck dinners, a food co-op, babysitting co-ops, breastfeeding support, an outreach/volunteer program and a book club. With the size of the group growing at such a fast rate there became a need for greater structural support and a treasury organization to collect and manage funds used to cover activity expenditures. As a result, Main Line Moms recently fused with the non-profit Families for Natural Living (FNL) allowing for 501(C)3 status, enabling the group to petition churches, schools and community centers for space for meetings and free public lectures.

The group, now known as Families for Natural Living Philadelphia (FNLP), has become a second family for the members, creating relationships that will hopefully continue on throughout the lives of the children. Co-facilitator Marie Goodwin takes the group’s relevance to an entirely different level by focusing on how it impacts each member’s psyche.

“On the individual level, if you, as a parent, surround yourself with models of appropriate, compassionate, positive, nurturing parenting, you will bring these behaviors into yourselves.” The implications can reach even further, according to Marie, potentially influencing the parenting styles of our children.

“This [experience] can heal bad examples from our own childhoods and establish more positive discipline for your children who will in turn nurture their own children someday by your example.”

Her thoughts give me pause and although it may sound corny, for me her sentiments evoke Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young’s lyrics from their hit song Teach Your Children. I’ve always loved that song and now, as a mother, its words have acquired new poignancy.

It’s difficult to sum up what FNLP means to me. Its existence has allowed me the opportunity to meet and befriend some of the brightest, most insightful women I have ever known. These women (some with partners and some on their own) are raising securely bonded children who are being taught at a young age the importance of community involvement. I’m a better woman because of them and a better mother to my precious daughter.

THE FUTURE OF FOOD, a Public Showing of the Documentary Film by Deborah Garcia on the Crisis of Genetically Modified and Engineered Foods...

   Join the FNL Philadelphia Community Group on January 29, 2006 for a public showing of the film The Future of Food by the Philadephia Community Group at Bryn Mawr College, Carpenter Library, Sunday, 3:30 p.m.  Admission $15.  For more information call 1-610-640-2788.  FNL President, Lisa Reagan, will moderate a question and answer discussion after the film.  Co-sponsors include, Citizens Alliance for Progressive Health Awareness, Arrowroot Natural Market (www.arrowrootorganics.com), Awesome Foods (www.awesome_foods.com), and the Mariano Holistic Life Center (www.drmariano.com).  For directions tothe event: www.brynmawr.edu/visit/map_directions.shtml