Sweet Little Child

Today was an extremely full day.  (Bet you didn't see that one coming)  It started out with waking up at 5:30 in order to get to a 7:15 doctor's appointment with Ivy's orthopedist an hour away.  Needless to say everyone's sleep schedule was thrown more than a little off and everyone was just a little fussy.  The news from her doctor continues to be good, and for that we are very thankful. 

Because everyone was a little thrown off today I was a little more lax about my television rule and when Ivy started asking me (more like pleading) if she could watch Mo' (Elmo) on the computer. I gave in rather quickly.  I did however make her clean up her toys first.

My husband and I were sitting in the living room with Ivy, and talking with each other about how much we appreciate that Sesame Street always includes children with disabilities, and of many different races in their show because there are a lot of kids who never get exposed to wheel-chairs, braces, or even someone with a different color skin.  Then, the next video started. It didn't seem like one that should make me cry but I started to almost immediately.  It was just a video of a little boy planting seeds in a cup, nothing really that special or dramatic.  The little boy however had Down Syndrome.  The reason why I was crying wasn't because Sesame Street had set out to make a tear jerker video about a handicap child succeeding in a special task. On the contrary, nothing in the video even acknowledged the little boys handicap, no emotional music, no narrative about how this little boy is special, it was just a little boy planting some seeds in a cup.

The reason why I started to weep was because nearly 40% of these little miracle children are killed before they even leave the womb.  They never get to experience the joy of planting seeds and watching them grow, because it was deemed that they wouldn't live a life of value.  They'll never get to taste apples or pizza.  Their faces won't light up when they watch a Disney cartoon.  They'll never grow and learn how to become somewhat self-sufficient because they were never given the opportunity.

Just because someone's quality of life is going to be different than ours does not mean that they will not have one.  Children and adults who are disabled teach compassion and care to everyone around them.  They teach us service in a way that nothing else can.  Every mother wants their child to be perfect, but our God has a plan for every single baby.  My soul breaks when I think of all the children who will never taste ice-cream or learn how to tie their shoe. Almost one out of every four children are killed before they have a chance at life.

I'm not writing this to accuse anyone who has had an abortion of being a horrible person, my heart breaks for you.  I have never met a woman or man whose child was aborted that didn't greatly regret it. (Please know that God is able and wants to forgive you even when you can't forgive yourself) The only reason why I'm writing this today was because I was so blessed by the life of one little boy.  I'm not sure if his parents had any indication before birth that he was going to have Down Syndrome, but I am so glad they allowed him to be born so he could be a blessing to others.

My Statistics can be found here and the video can be found here, again it's not a tear jerker in and of itself, just a little boy planting some seeds.