The first time I marched in Washington D.C. to protest legalized abortion I was 28 years old and six months pregnant with our son Jacob. It was a whirlwind trip as I traveled eight hours by bus through the night, from Michigan, arrived in time to march and left later that day to return home.
The experience was really important, though somewhat lonely, as I didn't personally know a soul. However, I was shoulder-to-shoulder with tens-of-thousands of like-minded friends, showing up in D.C. to let our elected officials know by our peaceful presence that we dissented to legalized abortion.
The next time I went to the March for Life was in 2014, this time with an incredibly dear person...my sweet mother. Ten years after having my last baby, she and I marched hand-in-hand. We flew into our nation's capital two days before the march, which is held on the Friday closest to the anniversary of the fateful companion decisions of Roe v. Wade/Doe v. Bolton, January 22 (1973).
That Thursday, due to bitter cold and snow, most government offices were closed. All except the nation's highest court. So, she and I bundled up like Arctic explorers and braved the cold, walking many blocks from our downtown hotel to the Supreme Court. It was quite a boring copyright case, but wow, was it cool to be there in person to listen to oral arguments and watch our justices ask questions!
And yet, being at the March for Life with my mother was so much more valuable! We were awed by the throngs who braved the cold to speak for the voiceless.
I made my third trip to the March for Life in D.C. in 2016, my second bus trip. I must have thought it would be easier this time on a bus, not being pregnant. I forgot to factor my increase in age and my sciatica. Oy vey! And then, the journey rapidly turned into a round-trip adventure after an epic blizzard caused our bus driver to make the executive decision to turn around and head home only six hours after we had arrived.
We made it to the Mall in time to see a surprising number of dedicated marchers preparing to make the annual trek up Constitution Avenue, past the Capitol to the steps of the Supreme Court. Our bus skirted out of town as the march began, and just missed the storm, making it home without incident. Unfortunately, a great many were stranded on the Pennsylvania Turnpike for hours with snow and ice hemming them in.
For the last two years, my mom and I have had the privilege of returning to the March together, both times by car. The ride home was dicey last year, with a patch of terrible lake-effect snow in eastern Ohio. We are praying for smooth sailing back to Michigan later today.
This year, she and I experienced another great civics moment together, not unlike our Supreme Court visit in 2014. This year we obtained gallery passes to witness the impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate. Though it was an historical event, with Chief Justice John Roberts presiding, the march was still the highlight of our trip.
We would prefer NOT to have this reason to come to D.C. It is a somber occasion, yet there is a definite air of hopefulness. It is encouraging to see HUNDREDS-of-thousands of men, women and children marching for the most vulnerable among us, marching in opposition to the single most significant human rights abuse of our time.
It was extra-special to walk in step with two dear friends, another mother-daughter duo. I am thankful for Bonnie Shellnut, Lori Rogalski and Catherine Kristian . . . for their loving example as servants of the LORD. It is beautiful that we share a sisterhood in Messiah and a passion to "rescue those being led away to death" and "hold back those staggering toward slaughter."
What follows is a photo-essay of the 2020 March for Life. I tried to capture as many photos as I could of marchers who had creatively made their own signs. May abortion become unthinkable, quickly and in our day! May those who have had one (or more) find true healing in repentance. May those who consider abortion a valid option come to know the blessing that results when we CHOOSE LIFE!
"Rescue those being led away to death, and restrain those stumbling toward the slaughter. If you say, “Behold, we did not know about this,” does not He who weighs hearts consider it? Does not the One who guards your life know? Will He not repay a man according to his deeds?" ~ Provers 24:11-12
"Open thy mouth for the dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destruction. Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy." ~ Proverbs 31:8-9
What would Baby Yoda say?
For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be. ~ Psalm 139:13-16