LIFE…IN PROGRESS
By Maria Lewis
On October 27, 1994, I was born Maria Michelle Lewis.
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 3,979,000
children were born in the United States in 1994 (―Live Births
and Birth Rates, by Year Infoplease.com‖). Johnson &
Johnson affiliates reports that four million children are born each
year (―Surprising facts about birth in the United States Baby
Center‖). Each of these children‘s lives began at conception.
Human life develops in stages inside the womb and continues to
grow after birth. Without proper protection and care from the
mother, a human cannot grow. Abortion halts growth,
terminating the young life inside of a woman. In the 40 years
since Roe v. Wade, 55,772,000 children have been victims of
abortion (Ertelt, Steve). More innocent human lives have been
eliminated over forty years than are annually born. That is about
fourteen abortions for every child born.
Life is a process. Our physical and mental development are part
of this process. The older we get, the taller, more intelligent,
and more mature our bodies are. We do not come out of the
womb with a brain filled with knowledge. Over time, we
acquire wisdom and hone our skills. The same happens with a
fetus. A fetus is not conceived at the size of a full baby. A fetus
requires time to grow, to develop. Parents experience this
growth through a child‘s first steps or first words. Parents feed
their child to ensure the child‘s proper development. The same
must be done for a fetus. If the mother does not nourish this
human life, the human cannot grow.
Even though we don‘t see every stage of a fetus‘s development,
a fetus is still a person. As philosophy professor Stephen
Schwarz once said, ―Being a fetus is merely on stage in the life
of a person‖ (Cozic, Tipp 34). Everyone must go through the
fetus stage. If we didn‘t, we would not be here.
Read More: Life… in Progress. Nov 2013 Teachers Saving Children Newsletter. http://www.teacherssavingchildren.org
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