The Topics of Conversation, in order, of my last visit to the OB/GYN

1. Foucault
2. Augustine
3. Aquinas
4. C.S. Lewis
5. The nature of religious authority
6. My uterus

My last OB/GYN was just starting a master's in pastoral ministry (because an M.D. apparently isn't enough school for a lifetime) in the same department where my master's degree was wrapping up.  We spent most of my office visits talking theology, course selection, interpretation of assigned reading, and professor selection, and only after that got around to pregnancy shop talk.

My doctor now always wants to talk about what I'm reading (I've always got a book with me - if I have time to kill in the waiting room and the exam room, I'm going to be catching up on my work!), what I do, how it affects the church, etc.  Between that and talk of Baylor basketball, we almost never talk about pregnancy much at all.  For instance, I have never once heard what my uterus is "measuring" because we're always talking about theologians while he's got the measuring tape out.  We pause conversation to hear the baby's heartbeat, and then pick up again after that.

Eventually we do get around to less philosophical and more gestational topics, but I have on several occasions had to call the office after I left because I forgot to ask important questions.  I never even asked whether my Strep B culture came back positive or negative.  Things like that.

He's a wonderful doctor, is very kind, and agrees that what is going on in my body is (at least so far) "natural and not medical" (his words).  He is happy to stay out of the way as long as that is possible, and he's willing to entertain my crunchy craziness as long as it is medically possible to do so.  This is a welcome consolation, since I had fully intended to see a midwife this time around, but for insurance reasons was not able to.  He also sees half of Waco, so I'm lucky to have gotten in as a patient.

Both he and my previous OB/GYN recognize my tendency to overthink, to overprepare, and to try to manage things beyond my control.  They are patient with this nutty streak in me and always offer practical wisdom that is as valuable as their medical expertise.

So this is not a complaint post by any stretch (ha, pardon the pun...now that I'm thinking about dilation, I must have my cervix on the brain!).  It's just a way to share my strange and funny experiences with the medical professionals I somehow manage to find.  It is also a backhanded offer of my deep appreciation for the fact that both of my children will be born under the care of committed Christians who read widely, think deeply, pray fervently, and minister diligently in their own congregations.  It may not matter to their standard of medical care that they love Jesus and his church, but it matters to me.