A mother’s heart, a mother’s mission

Source: Unmaskingchoice.ca
Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (CCBR)

by Ruth Shaw

There are a few moments in a woman’s life that are 100 % unforgettable, and one of those includes birthing a child (did I say child? I meant sub-human non-person blob.) Six and a half weeks ago, I had my memorable experience when I gave birth to our little son, William.
In the past few weeks between feeding, changing and cleaning William several times a day, I have had the opportunity to reflect on my birth experience, but more fundamentally, how my experience can help save babies.
Have you ever been asked by a pro-“choice” individual if you have ever been pregnant? The intention behind the question is to somehow discredit or suggest that one must experience pregnancy to be able to speculate what a pregnant woman is carrying (aka pre-born child). What pro-choicers don’t realize is that by asking this question, they are implying that if you have been pregnant, it gives you the insight to speak on the subject of pregnancy, birth, and abortion. And why is that?
Because mothers know. What do they know?
They know the difficulty and the intimacy of pregnancy – morning sickness, insomnia, feeling little kicks and little hands, more sickness, fake contractions, picturing what your little one will look like, extreme exhaustion, watching your body change etc… the list goes on and on.
They know the difficulty (an understatement, I know) and reward of birth—feeling like your body is tearing open, possibly feeling the baby’s head come out, the possible hours of pushing and definitely the hours of pain. Lastly, they know the shock and awe when that little person emerges screaming into the world only to be held by one person: Mama.
This was my experience. William literally slid out into the doctor’s hands screaming his face off. Someone was holding him but somehow he intrinsically knew that this wasn’t the right person, so he kept screaming. The minute they placed him on my chest, he calmed down. How did that happen? How did William know who I was when he couldn’t see a thing? How did he know that he could trust me, that he was safe? Maybe, it’s because I carried him for nine months. We did some pretty crazy things while I was pregnant, but through it all, he learned to trust me—that he is safe with me. That the sound of my heartbeat would bring him comfort. This need did not suddenly develop when he was born, but rather, it developed through the security he felt in my womb.
They know the fragility and vulnerability of these little humans. Since being pregnant and giving birth to William that I have a stronger, more visceral reaction to abortion imagery and footage and I feel doubly grieved at hearing about a woman who has had an abortion because I can’t even imagine what losing William would feel like.
This past week, my husband James was working on a video which exposes what the pro-“choice” movement really endorses. I was tempted to look away several times as the baby was being pulled out piece by piece from her mother’s womb and as we got to the part which shows a late-term aborted baby, I said to James several times, “How old is that baby? James, how old is that baby? He/she looks like William!!”
Through learning about William in the womb, though birth and in the past six weeks, I have learned about these babies too, and my mother’s heart grieves.
My Mama Bear instinct has grown to want to protect not just my own son, but all these babies. I am angry that anyone would think to hurt them! That there was noone there who chose to protect them! I am sure that there are other mothers who must feel the same way!
Mothers, we have gained some invaluable experience through simply living it and making it through in one piece. We know more than anyone else the vulnerability, fragility and beauty of our children. We know what our little ones need to feel safe (as I write, William is sleeping with his head on my chest) and we know better than anyone else the humanity of our little ones in the womb because we felt it all the way through! We felt our babies grow, we felt them poke us and prod us and finally, we felt them emerge from our own bodies.
I want to encourage all the mothers I know – Do anything you can to save lives. I know that often we feel like we are too busy just getting through the day taking care of our own babies, so here are some suggestions of ways in which I think that pro-life mothers can do small things to change hearts and minds around them:
If you have Facebook, take a couple minutes when you can and share CCBR’s videos, articles or intentionally put your status as something to do with abortion. I firmly believe that it can and will impact someone on your Facebook page and spark a conversation about abortion.
Buy some of CCBR’s postcards, take a walk with your kids and distribute them. This is something that can easily be built in to your day.
If there is an opportunity to do “Choice” Chain once a week for two hours in your city, I would encourage you to attend that and share your life experience and knowledge with people on the street. I plan on taking William to “Choice” Chain in a sling so that he can save babies (believe me, there is a lot less arguing when you have an infant with you).
Get your church to get involved, whether it be through hosting presentations, activism or financially supporting effective pro-life work like CCBR’s.
Lastly, I want to encourage all the mothers I know to choose to evaluate honestly what you can do to help save these little ones. I recently heard of a mom of fourteen doing “Choice” Chain! Now, that is inspiring. If that woman can find time to save some lives, then so can I!) I hope you will sincerely take to heart: What can I do to save babies?
If all that I have said is accurate and true, then who should the pro-choice movement fear more than anyone else? Mothers.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.