Katie’s Choice
Friday, July 23rd, 2010Katie is 18 years old. She’s in high school, and she’s a straight-A student. She’s involved in several clubs in her school, and she’s the Senior Class President. Katie is well-known and well-loved by all who know her. And she’s also pregnant. Or she was, rather.
When Katie started experiencing several symptoms of pregnancy, she tried to brush the nagging thoughts aside that she just might be. She thought that could never happen to someone like her. Just to prove to herself that she wasn’t pregnant, just to get rid of those nagging thoughts, just to sleep a little better at night, she decided to take a home pregnancy test. Not because she thought she was pregnant…of course not. She just wanted to prove she wasn’t. But when two pink lines appeared on her pregnancy test, she was shocked. Something had to be wrong with the test. So she decided to go a more reliable route to find out that she wasn’t really pregnant. She went to the local Sav-A-Life and got a pregnancy test, which also tested positive. Right there in the Sav-A-Life office, right in front of the counselor she was meeting with, she lost it. Katie cried until she didn’t have any tears left. And then she listened to her counselor, who began calmly discussing her options with her. The counselor mentioned that Katie might want to consider taking the Options class offered by the Genesis program with New Beginnings. Katie agreed that it sounded like a good idea, and together she and her counselor called the Genesis director to plan a time to meet.
Calmed down and finding an ounce of hope in her soul, Katie left the Sav-A-Life that day. But the longer the day wore on, the more scared she got. She couldn’t think about carrying this baby to term. What would everyone think? How would she cope? How much would her life change? Desperate, Katie began planning an abortion. She called the abortion clinic and scheduled an appointment in a week. Meanwhile, she skipped her follow up appointment at the Sav-A-Life and her Genesis appointment. She ignored the phone calls from her counselor and from the Genesis director. Guilt knawed at her insides, but she pushed it away.
A week later, Katie walked out of the abortion clinic. She thought she would feel relieved, but she felt hollow instead. She walked to her car, climbed in, and put her head on the steering wheel before she burst into tears.
Desperation drives a person to do things they wouldn’t normally do. Another girl, another teen pregnancy, leading to another desperate choice. One more baby who won’t know what it is to live and laugh and love. This is our fight…not against, but for girls like Katie who are hurting, broken, and desperate. They need to know they’re not alone, and they need to know that death for their child is not the only way out. That’s what we’re here for. By God’s grace, to join in the effort to rescue unborn children and to rescue girls like Katie from making choices they will regret and grieve for a lifetime.