Books by Robin Lim

The placenta, the root of your origin, is a miraculous organ that shares and protects your life. It is the conductor that unites you with your mother and serves as the control panel of the womb-ship that sustains you until you are born. It was conceived at the moment of your genesis. Your placenta is genetically identical to you. Though you share some of your parents' genetic identity, unless you have a monozygotic (identical) twin, no one, except your placenta, has ever been so perfectly, exactly you. Sexual reproduction, the act of creating new life, only works because of the placenta. As mammals, we reproduce sexually, so sex is the reddest, hottest tile in the mosaic of our earthly lives, and the placenta is the mandala in the center of this miracle. Historically, our creation stories tell of the Earth Mother birthing the world: her amniotic fluid became the oceans, the placenta became the Tree of Life. This demonstrates how essential the placenta is to our survival and how embedded it is in our psyche. According to Chaos Theory, dynamic systems are sensitive to start up conditions. Human beings are extremely dynamic systems, and our survival hinges on the strength of our individual immune systems. The placenta is the commander-in-chief of the baby's immune system during embryonic development (i.e. condition of start-up). Thus, we must protect our offspring's placentas by being gentle during the transition of birth, to give our children the best possible start and protect the very foundation of their immune systems.

Ibu Robin Lim. . . was born in 1956 when a Filipino, Chinese woman married a German, Irish, Native American, against all advice. She now lives in Indonesia where she is called; "Ibu Robin" (Mother Robin). Lim is a Certified Professional Midwife, with the North American Registry of Midwives and Ikatan Bidan Indonesia. She devotes her life to Yayasan Bumi Sehat, a not for profit organization with clinics in Bali and Aceh, www.bumisehatbali.org, www.robinlimsupport.org. Along with receiving babies, Ibu Robin is an author of books in the childbirth genre, in both English and Bahasa Indonesia. Lim has two published chapbooks of poetry, Stretch Marks and As a Child in the Religion of Gratitude, she was a contributor to the Tsunami Notebook (Half Angel Press, Bali, Indonesia, 2005). Also published in 2006 by Half Angel; Obat Asli . . . the Traditional Healing Herbs of Bali. In September 2009, Robin's novel, Butterfly People, was released by Anvil Press, in the Philippines. Ibu Robin's new book, Placenta . . . the Forgotten Chakra, promises to make gentle birth more gentle. Robin's support and inspiration is her family, husband Wil, eight astounding children; Déjà, Nöel, Zhòu, Lakota, Zion, Thoreau, Hanoman, Ellyanna and two grandchildren, Zhòuie Martinez and Bodhi Padma Edzra Banjo Bernhardt, plus one more on the way. In 2011, Lim was named a CNN Hero for her work in maternal and child health in Indonesia and disaster zones. Ibu Robin's passion is "Building Peace on Earth, One Baby, One Mother, One Family at a time." Endorsements:ROBIN LIM CNN HERO 2011Ibu Robin Lim is committed as a poet, a midwife, a mother, and as a global leader to living her life for love. "Robin Lim is a woman of staggering energy, passion, goodness and talent. Her poems take all four of those traits, and weave them into wonder." -Elizabeth Gilbert"Robin Lim's poems are born from the same womb as her devotion to midwifery. A womb that treasures each life, even faced with its darkest questions. She enters the world of words and of birth with equal humility, purpose, and a profound care for humanity. Her poetic images are clear and trenchant and they aim for the soul. Her language rises from a notable forthrightness, and ripens with a crone's articulation. We recognize: Yes, that is who we are. Yes, that is what frightens us. Yes, that is what leads us toward love. With these poems, and with her devotion to life, Lim is wise-on our behalf." -Margo Berdeshevsky"Robin Lim is one of my heroes. Her dedication to mothers, babies and the health of the planet family, is matched only by her love of writing. In these pages you will feel the raw emotion, passion, humor, hope and tenacity that fuels this great woman warrior. I am certain that you too will discover that the world is a brighter place with her in it." -Michael Franti