Walking home after the PP stint today, I hummed some praise songs
and asked God to bring some relief, some joy, from the grief I felt. I wondered into a new juice bar that I noticed for the first time today in the market on Greenleaf and Mar Vista. I was quickly in conversation with a
woman who was probably planted there as advertisement, as she was very
obviously enjoying her orange concoction of carrot, pineapple, and orange
juice.
I told her what I had just been doing. She told me about her 4th
pregnancy, an unwelcome surprise since she already had three kids, and the
youngest was 11 years old. She and
her husband were sad; her family thought she was nuts to keep the child when
she could abort. Yet, she was
determined to go through with it. Three
months into the pregnancy she miscarried.
She brought the little body of her baby to the emergency room. And there she waited, and waited, and
waited. When she started bleeding
again, she got the attention she needed.
But rather than rushing her in for the customary D & C, they did an
ultrasound and discovered she was still pregnant. She had been carrying twins, and one had survived the
miscarriage. Six months later she
gave birth to a little girl.
Six weeks later came the second shock! She was pregnant again. She made it clear to everyone that
there would be no sadness and despair this time. She had grieved over the baby she lost, and now counted this
one as a blessing. Because she was
older, the OB wanted to do the amniocentesis. She declined.
She knew she would keep the baby no matter what. Her fifth child was a boy and had
Down’s Syndrome. She had no idea
what that meant. When she asked
what to expect, she was told that he would not grow very tall. (Had she been
told that he was “Mongoloid” she would have understood – but this Down’s
Syndrome was a new term to her.)
She named him David, for she remembered in the Bible story, that David
was not very tall, and was the youngest.
David has been a huge blessing to her. He is now 25 years old. He is the most affectionate and kind of
all her kids. He has a sixth sense
about her emotions, and seems to know just the right things to say. He is also full of faith and
encouragement. When her husband
left her 10 years ago for another woman, David continued to tell her that he
would be back. One year ago, the
husband returned – though difficult, they are working things out in their
marriage. It is because of
her son’s faith, love, and automatic forgiveness that she is moving forward
with mending her marriage.
Most parents abort their baby when they learn it may be
Down’s Syndrome. (http://www.lifenews.com/2011/04/19/90-of-down-syndrome-children-aborted-survivors-bring-joy/) I think it would be really hard to care
for a handicapped child… but truth is, though obviously difficult, I have yet
to hear a parent of a Down Syndrome child say anything but what a blessing their
child is –they can’t imagine life without such a gift. (http://www.crosswalk.com/family/parenting/children-with-down-syndrome-bring-joy.html)
Yes, God heard and answered my prayer. I got to hear a
story of a woman carrying two crisis pregnancies to term. (Her family continues to live in
poverty, yet she has never regretted choosing children over an “easier life.”)
And I found a good juice bar! I
loved the carrot/apple/spinach drink!
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