these thousand hills

on october 16, in the most beautiful way i could ever have imagined, our 4th and final child joined our family.  our son, august imanzi.  (this story is far too detailed and long for most people to want to read.  but his birth was one of the most incredible experiences of my life and i want to remember every detail.  so this might be more for me than it is for anyone else.)    its been two days and i always try to record my birth stories shortly after they happen so that i can recall it all clearly.  but even now, shy of 48 hours later, both the beauty and struggle are already beginning to fade and lose their brilliancy and shape.  moments pass by so quickly, even the most significant ones.  and remembering them is all we can do.  we can never ever re-live them. i had been feeling really uncomfortable for weeks, specifically the last week.  on sunday, a week before his birth, i had a terrible bout of vomiting and was overwhelmed by how much was happening in my body.  i knew it wasn'