QUESTION OF THE DAY - MỖI NGÀY MỘT NGHI VẤN

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MY LIFE WAS CHANGED FOREVER 

ABORTION SURVIVORS

WHO ARE THE ABORTION SURVIVORS?

Put yourself in their places. What is it like to know that your own parent attempted to kill you before you were born? Or, why was your brother or sister aborted and you were not? These are the terrible issues which abortion survivors have faced and dealt with. There are many abortion survivors. Here is a sampling of their stories:

Gianna Jessen

My name is Gianna Jessen…I was aborted, and I did not die. My biological mother was 7 months pregnant when she went to Planned Parenthood in southern California, and they advised her to have a late-term saline abortion.

A saline abortion is a solution of salt saline that is injected into the mother's womb. The baby then gulps the solution. It burns the baby inside and out, and then the mother is to deliver a dead baby within 24 hours.

This happened to me! I remained in the solution for approximately 18 hours and was delivered ALIVE…in a California abortion clinic. There were young women in the room who had already been given their injections and were waiting to deliver dead babies. When they saw me the abortionist was not yet on duty and had me transferred to the hospital.

…I should be blind, burned…I should be dead! And yet, I live! Due to a lack of oxygen supply during the abortion I live with cerebral palsy.

When I was diagnosed with this, all I could do was lie there. They said that was all I would ever do! Through prayer and hard work by my foster mother, I was walking at age 3 ½ with the help of a walker and leg braces. At that time I was also adopted into a wonderful family. Today I am left only with a slight limp. I no longer have need of a walker or leg braces.

…Death did not prevail over me…and I am so thankful!

Sarah Smith

My mother's choice was my death sentence. My mother, Betty, had an abortion…A few weeks after that she was sitting at home reading when the book on her stomach began to bounce up and down. That's when she knew she was still pregnant…with ME!

"I'm so sorry, Betty," the doctor told her when she went back to him, "You were carrying twins."

Although a second abortion was suggested, my mother refused and instead brought me to term. I was born with bilateral congenital dislocated hips, a condition for which I've had dozens of operations. It hasn't stopped me from pursuing my medical studies, though, or from speaking out whenever I can for the right to life.

…I have forgiven my parents for trying to abort me, and I forgive the abortionist who killed my twin brother and who almost killed me. I often think of my brother, Andrew James, whom nobody can replace.

I believe that the way of truth, love, and God's grace is the only way to deal with the abortion tragedy. I would like to call all people to stand with me to defend the right to life of all persons. There are many alternatives to abortion. Nobody needs to sacrifice her child, no matter what anyone says.

Rebekah Forney

When I was eight, I was snooping around my mom's Bible while she wasn't home and found four pieces of paper that were folded up and stuffed between the pages. I unfolded them and read the first sentence: "I was sixteen years old when I became pregnant with Elizabeth and I had no idea what to do." Not knowing what I had just found, I quickly shoved the papers back into the Bible and tried to forget about it.

Two nights later, it was still bothering me. My mom, dad, and I were out to dinner; and in the middle of my parents' conversation I blurted out, "Mom, were you pregnant when you were 16?" She just looked at me with tears filling her eyes. She explained to me how she had an abortion; and as an eight-year-old, I could only imagine what it was. She said something about my sister, whom she had named Elizabeth, being in Heaven. At that moment it clicked for me that I had lost my sister.

Over the next three years…I grasped the concept of what an abortion really was and got used to the fact that I was deprived of a sister I should have had. It was scary to know that my mom had killed someone that was so important to me.

As I reached my teen years, I began to write in a journal. Instead of writing Dear Diary, I would write Dear Liz. I became obsessed with finding the father of my sister because I felt like it would somehow bring me closer to her. I wrote stories and poems about this girl I would never know and pretended she was a person. After I had my heart broken by a guy, I wished she were there to help me through it; and my tears of a broken heart turned into tears of missing my sister. I was mad at my mom for being so selfish and taking the life of her own child just so she wouldn't have to bear the weight of having a kid at 16.

...I finally grew out of my stage of denial that Liz wasn't alive. Call me crazy, but sometimes I would talk to her at night as if she was next to me listening. After a lot of prayer, writing, and talking, I came to the realization that even though Mom did abort my sister, being mad at her wouldn't do me any good. We've resolved things and have a strong relationship. Thanks to her and my aunt, I have overcome the denial of my sister's death.

After holding in my feelings for so long, I had to let them out. I was not only dealing with the loss of a sister, but the regular trials of a teenage girl on the brink of life: school, pressure from friends and parents, making decisions for my life, and accepting myself for who I am. I had a few close friends that helped me through all this, and I also did a lot of writing. Writing is the way that I found I can express myself the most. For some people it's painting; for others it's a sport. After praying about it, I came to the last step in giving up my issues with my sister: I handed them over to Christ.

If you find out that you lost a sibling to abortion, you have to let your feelings out. Don't keep them bottled up inside because you will drive yourself crazy. Tell your parents what you're thinking so that they know what you are dealing with; and try not to be mad at them for taking the life of someone that could have been in your life. Also, get involved with a youth group. Building a relationship with Christ is the best way to let go of all your pain.