Random Thoughts: Keep Marching Baby

The March for Life was amazing!  I gotta say — it was  definitely worth the 18 hours of round-trip travel time and every other chaotic moment that comes with traveling with 6 kids.  So glad we went!

It was such an impactful experience that it’s hard to put my mind around it all — but I’m gonna try.  To gain better perspective on the reasons for the March, you might like to check out last week’s post Why We March.

But for those of you who’d don’t mind a few random thoughts here or there — I offer you my “Random thoughts on the March for Life”.  Enjoy.

First Random Thought: Preach it.

Pope John Paul II got the importance of going into the streets and preaching the gospel.  His words from World Youth Day in 1993 just sort of nailed it. So I’m going to share them with you:

“The family especially is under attack. And the sacred character of human life denied.  

At this stage of history, the liberating message of the Gospel of Life has been put into your hands. And the mission of proclaiming it to the ends of the earth is now passing to your generation.

Do not be afraid to go out on the streets and into public places, like the first Apostles who preached Christ and the Good News of salvation.

This is no time to be ashamed of the Gospel. It is the time to preach it from the rooftops “

-Pope John Paull 11, 8th World Youth Day, Denver, 1993

Pretty good, right?  We have a duty to share the Gospel message. So let’s all face our fears and just preach it from the rooftops, people.

Going to the March is one small way to go out into the streets and preach the Gospel of Life — without using words.  Just being there speaks volumes.

And let’s dare to be bold like this guy:

Second Random Thought: Meeting the movers and shakers of the pro-life world.

We were pretty fortunate to get back stage and meet a number of the people that I have admired from afar.  It was great for our kids to meet them and see what courage and love looks like up close.

The atmosphere was really lively and exciting — everybody was having fun.

I just love Cardinal Dolan. He seems to be exactly the same person you hear on the radio.  When I met him, I was holding about 4 bags of popcorn — because mom’s are always given everything to carry.

So happy I could share our popcorn stash with this wonderful Cardinal.  Plus he’s Irish. Enough Said.

And speaking of Catholic Radio:

Gus Lloyd, if you’re reading this — which I’m pretty sure you’re not 🙁 — I was the random redheaded mother carrying a baby and  giving you two thumbs up.  Yeah, that was me. God bless you, brother!

We met athletes, congressmen, priests, religious, musicians, moms, dads, and people from all walks of life.  There were a lot of people there who were clearly doing great things with their lives — but their was a marked humility that came along with their mission.

These people seem to get it.  They get that this isn’t their work — it’s God’s.  In many ways, they are regular people — like you and me — just trying to do their part to help the cause of life.

You could sense that they knew that the message would be lost — their cause would be hurt — and division would result if they allowed themselves to get puffed up with pride.  It was refreshing.

And Vice-President Pence showed up.  I don’t expect I’m going to agree with everything this administration decides to do — but on life in the womb — yeah we can agree on that.  This is the first time a VP came to the March for Life.  Pretty historic!

P.S.  We need to pray that our administration makes good decisions for our country — are you praying for them?  I know I need to be reminded of that.

This guy below, Ben Watson, was so well-spoken about cherishing women, loving babies, and being a real man.

If I can figure out how to get a video clip from my husband’s iPhone I’ll try to post a quick interview we had with him backstage. 🙁 This guy is eloquent!

And I have to tip my cap to my own niece, Kate. She was in charge of media for the March for Life.  It was great for our kids to see their cousin in action.  We were so proud to watch her share her enthusiasm and talents with this worthy cause.

She did an amazing job!  I have said it before, but the Feminine Genius is for real — and it’s a fearsome thing to behold!  Here she is directing a bunch of secret service with some serious firepower.  You go Kate!

Third Random Thought: Planned Parenthood is the Elephant in the room.

While most of us backstage were just having fun and celebrating — there was a sense that some of these men and women were carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders — and they were only able to do it by God’s grace.  We really, really need to pray for them because it can’t be easy!

There were 2 people in particular whose jobs I don’t envy — at all.  Abby Johnson and David Daleiden.

David Daleiden was well named — he’s like a David going after the multi-billion dollar Goliath of a corporation known as Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in our country.

He managed to expose their barbaric practice of aborting babies fully intact so as to harvest their organs and sell them.  What?  That’s happening in our country?

Who knew, I mean the name “Planned Parenthood” sounds so responsible — so charitable — so very nice, doesn’t it?

If that’s not enough, their founder, Margaret Sanger, was admired by Hitler — her writings served as an inspiration for his efforts to eliminate those he deemed “unfit” to live in society.

Well, with friends like Hitler, who needs enemies?  And if your founder stinks, well then you have every likelihood of stinking too.

And if you’re wondering their real motivation? Well they’re a “non-profit”, but their CEO makes over a half a million dollars a year (sounds very non-profit, doesn’t it?), they take visa or MasterCard, and they offer no mammograms or ultrasounds on site. Seems pretty clear.

Planned Parenthood is no friend to women or babies. Period.  Thank goodness we have people like David Daleiden and this amazing woman, Abby Johnson, getting that truth out there.

Did you know she’s pregnant with twins — and if that’s not heroic enough, this will mean 6 kids under the age of 5 — that’s right — under 5!  Oh my gosh this woman could be sitting on a couch all day and I’d say she was amazing for just being a mom.

But she’s not sitting on the couch all day — no she’s helping people in the abortion industry to get out — because it’s not easy to get out.

Her organization, And Then There Were None, helps them find jobs and pay their bills until they can get back on their feet again.

She was once Employee of the Year at Planned Parenthood — that is, until she witnessed  an abortion being performed on a 13 week old baby on a sonogram.  She saw this baby fighting for it’s life — and losing.  It changed her.

Planned Parenthood sued her and tried to have a “gag” order against her sharing her experiences in that clinic.  She refused to listen, and she is doing great things with her life.  You go, Abby!

Gosh I admire how fearless they are!  I don’t think I could do what they do — but I am very grateful that they are going up against the giants — and winning!  Let’s keep praying for them!

Fourth Random Thought:  Marching

There was a lot of security, so our morning began pretty early.  Here we are before we all began to look like the walking dead:

And then we began to March.

The crowds were ginormous!  Here’s a shot of what it looked like.  It doesn’t do justice to the fact that we had waited almost an hour to get into the March to let the crowds die down — and there was still a sea of people behind of us.

Here’s looking the other way:

To be surrounded by hundreds of thousands of people united under one cause is pretty encouraging.

We were there representing many people who couldn’t show up — and sadly, many who had been aborted and were denied the right to march or live or laugh or cry.

Our family was there to represent the crazy families of the world:

And even our littles seemed to know that we were part of something special.  They seemed to sense that one day soon it would be their turn to fight against the injustices of the world.

Fifth Random Thought:  Most pro-lifers are just everyday people doing great acts of love.

Most pro-lifers aren’t battling multi-billion dollar corporations like Planned Parenthood — they just want to support babies and their moms and dads, every step of the way.

And if the mom and dad choose to have an abortion, they’re still there to love those people and be a shoulder to cry on when they realize the weight of what they have done.

The pro-life movement is so diverse, and going to the March is a great reminder that we all have a part to play that is entirely unique to us.

Sixth Random Thought:  Keep Marching Baby

I hope my kids will take this experience and ask themselves how they can make the world a better place with their unique gifts and talents.

I hope and pray that we are teaching our children to stand up for what is right — even when it’s hard.

We have to raise our children to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves — to be good, kind, generous, and fearless — especially fearless!

I hope they remember marching with their parents — peacefully, courageously, and with lots of joy.

So Keep Marching, baby — long after we have gone.  We are proud of you and we love you and we pray you’ll never give up the fight for the voiceless, the defenseless, and the weakest amongst us.

And that is the end of my random thoughts for the day.