our first home

Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List, passed on a beautiful story to me last night. She wrote:

While serving the poor in Calcutta, Mother Teresa once found a young boy on the streets and brought him back to Shishu Bhavan- one of the homes she established for impoverished and disabled children. There, the boy was given food and clean clothes- but he ran away! The next day, again the boy was brought back to Shishu Bhavan, and again he ran away. Three times, the boy ran away, until on the third day, one of the Sisters followed him.

"Why do you keep running away from home?" the Sister asked when she caught up to him. The boy pointed to a tree, under which a woman was standing, cooking a simple meal of food she had found in the garbage. "But this is home," he said. "This is where my mother is."

So simple. So beautiful. "Our mothers are our first home."

A mother's love for her child is powerful... strong... miracle-working. I have experienced this love firsthand through my own mother, and remember, in particular, how important her love was to me as a little girl. On my first day of kindergarten, I didn't want to leave my mom. She knew that I might get homesick, so she gave me a little picture of she and I together (left) to put into the clear front pocket of my Barney backpack. I would look at that picture throughout the day because it made me feel better; I was looking at my home... my mommy.

Love is the reason we stand for life. Abortion is the complete opposite of love, as, in Marjorie's words, it breaks down the door to our first home. And because it is impossible to separate the well-being of a mother from that of her child, we know that for every one of the 115,000 children suffering from abortion every day, there is a mother somewhere, suffering, too. When we destroy motherhood, we destroy love.

Today, on Mother's Day, thank your mom for choosing life. Thank her for her strong love that protected you when you were among the most small and helpless in society. And may each of us be strengthened in our resolve to protect all unborn children who are small and helpless just like we were.

I love you, Mommy.



Vita Pro Omni!