Being Sarah Palin

I'm almost done talking about Sarah Palin (at least until after the vice presidential debates), and you're probably done reading about her. But there's just a couple of things I need to say, so bear with me.
Based on all I've read (and I don't claim to have read all there is to read), Sarah Palin has had an uneventful life. I'll be honest, I'm comparing her life to those I know (myself included) who have had, let's say....some "events" in our lives. She was raised in a middle class home by two parents who are still married. She had a typical childhood, which included sports, church, siblings, falling in love with her high school sweetheart, a bit of travel, and college (well, 6 different colleges, but she did graduate from one of them). She got involved in her hometown, and began a political career. And had 4 healthy children along the way. I'm sure that there were hard times; perhaps her husband was away alot, perhaps one of her children had some difficulty in school, but all in all, I think it's safe to say that Sarah Palin's life until recently was very, very normal. No major upheavals, no life-changing events. I'm happy that she's had this kind of life, and I can only say that I wish that kind of life for anyone growing up. And many of us HAVE had that kind of life, and I just hope I don't offend any of you by what I'm about to say.
I speak from experience when I say that until you face some challenges in your life, it's easy to go along, not questioning anything, taking what you're told by your church, your parents, your respected elders as "the truth" and "the right way". It's easy to think that everyone has the same type of life you have; it's hard to understand what another person is going through. It's easy to take what you have for granted. In Sarah Palin's case, it's easy to believe in God, it's easy to think you can handle it all--after all, hasn't she handled life well so far? I believe, for Sarah Palin, it's easy to see things in black and white, with no shades of gray. And it's so very easy to think that, if everyone lived like you, they could have a good life too.
But now, Sarah Palin DOES have some challenges in her life. And she's about to find out that she can't handle it all, that things aren't always black and white, and that parenting is the hardest work she will ever do. Her 17 year old is pregnant; while Bristol probably has the best health care money can buy, things still happen--she's very young to be giving birth. Up until last year, I took it for granted that pregnancy and childbirth were sort of "mundane" (for lack of a better word)--if you were healthy, and lived in the United States, your chances of surviving childbirth were a given. That is, until a 23 year old friend of mine died just 5 days after giving birth to a beautiful son. Jennie was a healthy, smart, vibrant, wonderful person, and she died bringing Isaac into the world. I will never look at childbirth the same; women sacrifice more than a little weight gain to bring children into this world. Bristol may need support as the pregnancy progresses, and she sure as hell will need support after the baby is born--what if she's not as strong a person as Sarah Palin? Who will she turn to for help? She's going to face challenges that Sarah Palin and I cannot fathom--having a baby, finishing high school, going to college while having a small child, financial hardship--I could go on, but you get the idea.
The second, probably more intense and life-altering challenge that Sarah Palin is faced with came with the birth of her son, Trig. Despite her claim at the RNC, Levi is not a healthy baby. He has Down Syndrome. He will need medical help, therapy, and 24 hr. a day supervision for most of his life--I went to the National Down Syndrome Society website and the list of potential health problems alone is extensive. How will she be able to fit in learning how to care for him, how to do his therapy on the days that his therapist is not there, when she's trying to learn how to be a vice president? If she's never had to face a serious challenge in her life, she will be totally unprepared for the day when he develops one of the probable health issues. She might rise to the occasion, and I hope she does, but has she really, truly considered how she will manage to be a parent and a leader of our country when she is pulled, as tight as anyone has ever been pulled, in two extremely opposite directions?
What would any of us do if we get the phone call at 3 a.m. and it's the hospital on the other end of the line? Some of us, because of past experience, or just because we know things don't always go the way they should, may have thought about this. Has Sarah Palin?