i was 33, divorced with two little boys. i was struggling to provide for them. my doctor discovered a breast lump and i had no health insurance and was terrified about who would take care of my boys if i died.

at the breast clinic the doctor declared that my lump was benign and gave me a paper he had written that associated benign breast lumps with a woman’s failure to ovulate. he made me think i didn’t have to worry about getting pregnant so i wasn’t careful enough about birth control with my boyfriend. next thing i knew i was pregnant.
my boyfriend was nice but, like my husband before him, not a reliable worker. i was afraid that i wouldn’t be able to care for my sons and a new child – i was already just barely getting by with working and a tiny amount of child support. i did not want another child and i decided to ask god to give this new child to someone who did want it. i felt there was nothing worse than bringing an unwanted child into the world. a recent news article about an adopted little girl in new york city who was beaten to death by her adopted father caused me to rule out adoption. i decided to have a very early abortion and prayed that god would give the child to someone who would want and love it. i believed that god might honor this prayer for a miracle.
just after high school one of my best friends had an illegal abortion in mexico. when she returned she began hemorrhaging and was hospitalized. thank god she lived and recovered. i believe the woman is in the best position to know if she can raise a child properly and if she has the support of the father and her family. if that support is not there – as it so often is not – and she decides to have an abortion i think a safe, affordable, legal abortion must be available for her locally.