What Have You Learned Here?

[Lola May]

What’s the coolest thing you’ve learned on ABF Heaven?

I’ve gotten to know some incredibly interesting people from all over the world here, and I love how often I end up learning something completely unexpected from them. I’ve had conversations about everything from constellations and beekeeping to religion, photography and random history…and obviously I’ve learned quite a bit about ABF/ANR along the way. 😉

So now I’m curious what everyone else has picked up around here.

Maybe it was something about ANR or breastfeeding you genuinely didn’t know. Maybe someone taught you something about where they live, what they do, or some wonderfully obscure subject they happen to know a ridiculous amount about. Or maybe someone sent you down such a bizarre rabbit hole that halfway through you stopped and thought, “Wowzers, I hope nobody ever looks at my search history.” 😂

What’s something you know now because of someone you met here?

And if you know something fascinating that the rest of us probably don’t…share that too. The weirder the better on this very dull Monday!I’m always up for a new 🐰🕳️

[Cassius]

I’ve gotten good baking tips from a handful of people for some experiments I was doing with infusing dough with herbal tea flavors.

[TechieSFBay]

Mainly I’ve learned that outside the theme of the site, everyone has a unique history, challenges, expectations and beliefs that isn’t obvious from their profile. We tend to make snap judgments and those are almost always wrong. I admit I do that in spite of being aware of it. It’s human nature.

[Lola May]

Cassius,

Very cool! I saw some sourdough bread at the farmers market the other day that had whole herbs and their stems in it that made patterns on the bread. Almost too pretty to eat!

[Lola May]

Techie SF Bay,

I really like this answer. And, I’m guilty of it too. It’s amazing how different someone can be from whatever little story you’ve already made up about them in your head. I’ve had some of my most interesting conversations here with people I probably wouldn’t have expected to. It’s been a really good reminder to stay curious.

[Cassius]

I haven’t made sourdough yet, but that sounds delicious and now I want bread with a charcuterie board full of herb cheeses, meats, and honey.

I’ll have to give that a go though, maybe not so prettily, but for the flavor for sure. Thank you for the idea.

[David]

When you join any website such as this you never know what to expect.

I’ve learned and am to participate in this community. For many this site may be transactional but for those who participate a community has been developed and I’m happy to be a participant.

Through this community, I too have messaged and gotten to learn about some very interesting people.

[David]

I’ve also learned I should be more awake before responding to forum posts.

[Triton™]

I think the coolest thing I’ve learned on ABF Heaven is that this place isn’t just a forum but a global village where people wander in carrying armfuls of stories, quirks and wildly specific expertise.

Half the time I feel like I’m sitting around a campfire listening to travellers swap tales except the campfire occasionally flickers into conversations about lactation, intimacy and why humans are so beautifully strange.

I’ve learned things here that connect in ways I never expected and come across and chatted with folk whose life experiences stretch across continents, careers and personal journeys. Some have shared how ABF shaped their relationships whilst others have taught me how their upbringing influences the way they nurture, connect or express affection. It’s like anthropology but with more cwtching.

I’ve picked up little cultural gems like how milk is viewed as sacred in some traditions and how certain communities see nurturing as a communal act. How different countries approach intimacy with wildly different levels of awkwardness and enthusiasm. I swear this place has given me more cultural education than half the documentaries I’ve watched.

Somehow, we’ve had conversations where theology and tenderness sit side by side. I’ve learned how faith shapes people’s understanding of care, comfort and the body. One person explained how their spiritual tradition sees nourishment as a divine metaphor and suddenly I was knee deep in a symbolism I never knew existed.

I’ve learned of faith and not just religious faith but personal faith, such as faith in partners, healing, vulnerability and rebuilding trust. People here talk about their journeys with a sincerity that makes you pause and think Wow! humans really are stitched together with hope.

Then there’s the wonderfully human side of the desires that make us curious, tender, playful or introspective. I’ve learned how differently people experience closeness and how desire can be shaped by culture, trauma or joy and how ABF/ANR can be a surprisingly profound expression of comfort for some.

This place has also taught me that everything is connected in ways that make absolutely no sense until someone explains it. I’ve gone from reading about breastfeeding hormones to learning how ancient sailors navigated the world and hearing someone’s theory about milk as a symbol in mythology.

So, what do I know now because of being here? That humans are endlessly fascinating and that when you mix curiosity, kindness and a dash of mischief then you end up with a community that teaches you things you didn’t even know you wanted to learn.

A perfect ad for ABF Heaven!, Why not come for the nurturing energy, stay for the cultural anthropology, spiritual symbolism, emotional archaeology and the occasional why am I Googling this at 2am moment with a few puzzles thrown in!

[Lola May]

@milkylunch ❤️,

Well THIS certainly answered the question!

And I think “a global village” may be my favorite description of this place yet. Somehow you can come here to talk about one VERY specific thing and end up learning about someone’s culture, childhood, career, religion, country or whatever random subject they happen to know everything about. I love that part of it.

Also, I had to look up “cwtching,” so congratulations…you managed to teach me something new IN your response to my post about learning something new. 😘

And now I need to know what the hell YOU have Googled at 2am because of this place.🙃

[Lola May]

@njtitman,

I agree, David! I definitely didn’t expect the community part of it when I first wandered in here either. I’ve gotten to know some genuinely interesting people I never would’ve crossed paths with otherwise, and that’s been such a nice surprise. 🫶🏻

[Author]

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