It was 1977. I was young and so was my sister. She was 14 and I was 18. I knew about abortion and I knew girls who had had one.
I didn’t think much about it at all. I was too busy partying and doing my own thing to pay attention. Honestly, I had never heard anyone say that abortion was taking the life of a living baby or that the baby is alive from conception. There was no internet, so all I knew is what my friends had been told at the abortion clinic.
One day my younger sister came to me and told me she was pregnant. She was only 14. I talked about it with her and her boyfriend and, together, we decided abortion was their only option. We didn’t want my mom to know what they had been doing. I drove her to the clinic and went out for breakfast with her boyfriend, leaving her there to endure the abortion alone.
It was as if we didn’t want to deal with what was really happening.
Before leaving the house, my husband told me he didn’t think I should take my sister to get the abortion. I ignored him and went out the door. I wished later that he’d said more to stop us. My sister had the abortion with absolutely no counsel from the people at the clinic whatsoever. She was alone.
It was like an assembly line there at that office. One lady in the waiting room was trying very hard to talk her friend into not having an abortion. She was at least six months pregnant. I can remember thinking, “Who does she think she is telling her what to do?”
This shows you how sad, selfish, and calloused we all were. Five years later I started attending church and so did my sister. We started reading the Bible and realized what we had done was so wrong. I confessed to her that I was so sorry and she forgave me. I have tears as I write this today.
She had to ask forgiveness from God herself. She went on to get married and had children and grandchildren and so did I. I know one day we will see this child in heaven and I’m thankful for a loving God whose grace abounds. I think one of the sides to abortion that people don’t talk about is how totally blind people can be due to fear, selfishness, lack of courage, and knowledge.
We are so grateful for organizations like Save the Storks that educate and resource so many men and women experiencing unplanned pregnancies.
I’ve spent a lot of my life as a believer trying to end abortion in America. I write letters to congress, donate money, and pray for the unborn and women who find themselves in the same place as my sister, so many years ago.
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The author of this story wishes to remain anonymous to protect the family members involved.
