Why Choose Life?
Riana Peters, Grade 9
A new baby snuggles in his mother’s womb, anticipating seeing his mother’s eyes for the first time. He already feels her heart beat and hears her voice, but he yearns to see her face and gaze deeply into her eyes. Suddenly, he feels a sharp pain in his skull and is pulled out of the protection of the womb. Slowly the baby’s heart stops and with a quick flutter of his eyes he dies. His last thought was, Why doesn’t my mother want me?
Once a mother, a caregiver, and a provider for her children, she stares in a zombie-like trance, waiting to fade from existence. Her family dumped her in a nursing home. She receives no visits from her children, no care, and no love. Her days are filled with thoughts about how she came here surrounded by people who, like her, receive little love. Taking her last breath with her saddened heart, she drifts off to her eternal sleep.
In both examples, life was disregarded. The individuals who did these acts of abortion and abandonment had no respect for the lives that were given to them. They couldn’t see that each human being has a purpose and gifts to be shared. Life is a precious thing and no one but God has the power to give or take it away.
What does respecting life mean? Respecting life doesn’t just mean respecting the living. It means respecting life at all stages of life from birth to natural death. It means respecting those who don’t have a voice to stand up for themselves. It means standing up for those who are being persecuted for being conceived, growing old, or being a part of life. It means to voice what is right and protect God’s greatest gift, which is life itself.
Respecting life is important because it stops the slaughter of innocent babies and carelessness given to our elders. By choosing to respect life, lives are being saved. When life isn’t respected, not only does life die, but values die as well. The value of a human life is lessened with each unjust death. When life dies, so do the qualities carried in that person too. When an elder is stashed in a nursing home, unloved and forgotten, so is their wisdom, personal experiences, and bits of history. When a baby is aborted, that action kills potential doctors who could cure cancer, teachers, and leaders like Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. These events shouldn’t happen; instead, respect the life that is given.
In order to respect life, one must see when others are not considering life and stop it. Individuals can respect life by spending time in elderly homes, spreading information about abortion and nursing homes, joining an organization or group that respects life, and advocating at a place of worship or in a community.
Life should be valued because each human life has the potential to change the world. Respecting life means standing up for the unheard voices around the world.