I enjoyed reading an article called “The Future of Midwifery” by Judith Rooks and Kitty Ernst in the December 1999 edition of the IJCE (another find from the previously referenced big binder of back issues). The conclusion of the article was as follows:
It is said that the best way to predict the future is to create it. Creative forces come from our souls, our beliefs, our values, our moral and spiritual strength, and from the scientific evidence available to us at any given time. If we are to meet the challenges ahead, each of us must weigh authoritative pronouncements and popular opinions against the available scientific evidence, temper it with our own beliefs and values, and chart a course drawing on our collective moral and spiritual strengths. Change is often shaped not only by what we do but by what we do not do. The future of midwifery and our children’s care in childbirth is in our hands today. To be silent is to speak. To do nothing is to take action. (emphasis mine)
Sometimes it seems as if I am saying the same things over and over and trying to reach people who may or may not want to be reached. I found the above quote a good reminder that continuing to pursue change in birth practices is a worthwhile endeavor.
Talk Birth 
I totally agree Molly that at times it seems that we repeat ourselves, that getting the word out to women who don’t know that birth is natural and a woman’s body knows what to do without interference, if a Mom is open, without fear and trusts the birth process. It bothers me how many women in 2010 still have unnecessary cesareans. But look at when this article was written 1999.
Much has changed since then; we have made progress.. we have more home birth midwives and doula’s in active practice than when I started as a birth doula in 1998. More women are having home births and birth center births; although it’s still a minority, I’ve seen a lot of change in hospitals too since becoming a nurse in 1986. More mother friendly hospital environments, respect for a woman having a doula present at her birth etc… It is definitely a worthwhile endeavor. Change doesn’t happen overnite. Yet we have to remember WE are apart of the collective consciousness of moving birth into a compassionate non medically oriented arena and that is what keeps me keeping on.
Thanks Molly for doing what you do.
Robin Davis, LPN, CPMT, LD
Mothering U2 Birth Services
Durango, Colorado