💖 Closing the gap

The other day I was out on the sidewalk offering information, resources and ultimately hope to anyone who seemed like they might need it. We do this by offering a free flower as an ice breaker and then we offer a flier that has several pregnancy related and health related resources listed. We do this for half a day four days a week. Some days seem more successful than others if you base it on how many people are willing to take the resource flier. A really successful feeling day is when one of us gets to talk someone down from their crisis pregnancy. Sometimes the person is dead seriously afraid of being pregnant and all of the social stigma that can go with an unplanned pregnancy. Some are just nervous about timing. On this particular day the person was nervous about timing. Although she had no intention of considering abortion, she hadn't quite crossed over into I'm okay with this and she was for sure not in the excited stage. 

I talked to her for a few minutes outside on the sidewalk and then invited her into the building we rent next door to Planned Parenthood. Once we were inside we were able to talk more candidly. She explained her life circumstances. They were very similar to mine way back during my first (crisis) pregnancy. She was a college athlete about to complete her teaching credential. Although she was in a committed loving relationship where she wouldn't be pressured to have an abortion, she still felt unprepared to be a mother. She also talked about the stigma of the timing for her and how she would have to deal with that. I was able to reassure her and let her talk through her fears and concerns and then explain how things evolved for me after my pregnancy and this seemed to help. Ultimately we found that we had a mutual acquaintance in our lives who had been in my life when I had my child and brought her to practice. It seemed like this perspective of making the circumstances and the community a little smaller and more seemingly understanding was just what this young, possibly mom to be, needed. It is really what we are trying to accomplish as a pro life organization. We are trying to close the gap of isolation that many moms in crisis feel . I think this happens a little at a time and I also think this happened that day.