Linda For Life Stories From the Sidewalk

 👶👶 Two made the difference  I met her outside of Planned Parenthood.  She was visibly pregnant. We talked for a while for  about 15 minutes. She didn’t want to have an abortion, but she felt like that was the only thing she could do. We talked about the fact that she was late for her appointment. We talked about how she walked straight up to me without much coaxing. We talked about how that had something to do with her faith and her listening to God. We talked about so many things.  I thought she was changing her mind.  Then she said thank you for trying to help and she turned to walk towards the doors of Planned Parenthood. I didn’t think I would see her again. Abortions done when someone is as pregnant as she was take hours of time. The day went on with several other discouraging situations where the guy wanted to keep the baby, but that the girl didn’t.  I’ll admit at a certain point I went into the building and I cried a little. I wondered what ...

                                                             😇😊😌   United we need to be It is a battle out on the sidewalk in front of an abortion center. I stand in front of Planned parenthood several days a week, every week. There are so many things that go on in this arena. There are so many misunderstandings. I try to think of every angle of communication so that the mothers who are in a crisis situation believe that I am out there along with volunteers to actually help. There are so many lies being proclaimed in the media and in general conversation that it is hard to send the message we are trying to send. That message is truly that we want to help. Wanting to help doesn't mean that we can solve all of the problems that a mother in crisis might have but we can provide some answers and many resour...

                                                              👶👶👶 Change the Rules 👶👶 A few days ago I was standing on the sidewalk as a woman approached me. She happened to appear to be a woman of one of the cultures that had subscribed  to the population control theory. She started asking me in broken English,  if I was working with Planned Parenthood and I answered that I was not. I Asked her if she was pregnant. She said that she was. I felt my heart slip a little as I questioned whether she was seeking an abortion. She responded that she was and asked if I had the medicine for that. I told her I did not have that type of medicine and that I worked for an organization that did not support abortion. I then started to ask her questions about her situation. I pressed a little about how she...

👐 Generations   The scenario we parents of daughters fear. I saw it unfolding and knew in my gut what was happening . I saw a woman my age walking with her daughter . The woman my age was distraught looking . The daughter looked determined as daughters often do when they are making a decision that parents don’t agree with . I called out to the daughter who did take a flower but still proceeded to and entered Planned Parenthood. The mother followed but soon came out. I shouted out to the mother and asked her what was happening. I asked her if her daughter was having an abortion and she said she was afraid so. I asked her why. She told me a few things. I said “this is your grandchild “ go in and save that child and save your own daughter from the terrible heartache she’s going to have. She said she didn’t know what to say so I said pray I. Your way in, for God’s words and use them .  She went in and soon she and her daughter came out . They walked over to the outreach building ...

  I watched them at the far end of the parking lot deliberate. She seemed upset and he seemed to care that she was. He kept putting his arm around her. The perplexing thing was that as he put his arm around her he seemed to be pressing her towards the building. They got close enough for me to offer a flower and to comment on her obvious conflicted state of mind . He walked up to and he pointed her towards the clinic. He started to ask questions and to comment about us making it harder on everyone in situations requiring help from Planned Parenthood. I began explaining what we do and how we can help. I asked if she was having an abortion. He replied that it was none of my business and turned to walk away. I said that I thought she might want it to be.  He walked away and I waited. I wasn’t sure if she’d come out while I was still there. I wasn’t sure if she was there for the actual abortion. She exited the clinic about 30 minutes later and walked up to me wanting to know what I...

👊👊  The Fight I am, if anything, a fighter. I like battles. More importantly, I like to win. The thing that happens sometimes is that I forget what the war is and get stuck in little battles. There is a war going on that is killing our children. We are being led to believe that life is expendable. We are being convinced that we have a right to choose whether someone lives or dies. We are sickened by actual wars and the resulting travesties  yet we passively sit by and let the war on our next generation escalate into a battle veiled by protecting rights. This is secretly causing the war of protecting our children to be lost. These battles and this war is not about people it is about Good vs Evil. Evil is winning. I see this and I know this but I forget and I frequently lose my battles because I forget that we dont have to win every battle to win the war. John, our prayer warrior , reminded me of this and the fact that winning a battle with a fool is not a win.  Standing ...

😇😇Miracles...part two  There are always two parts to a story and every mom who walks into the outreach building has a front story and a back story. We all do. We have the story we let everyone see and we have the private story that forms us and how we think. These moms who are walking into Planned Parenthood and usually carrying too much of their story and most times just need a way to let it out to process it. I find that letting them talk gives them an opportunity to unravel the tale of what they think needs to be done so that they can get to what is in their heart. Last week magnified this.  “Tee” was wrapped in her partner`s fears and her own fears. She couldn't see past them at that moment. She said she didn't believe in God BUT that she caught herself asking Him for signs to know whether she should keep her baby. She called it bargaining. She didn't really think that was right. I said most of us had done it at some point in our lives. She said to God (that she didn...