I Have A Say Thanks to My Mom and Dad!!!

Being the oldest of 11, I am so thankful, especially now, for my Mom and Dad saying "yes" to life! Growing up, we never had a ton of money. My Dad was a high school chemistry teacher and my parents decided from the beginning that they wanted to have one of them home with us. My mom gave up her teaching career, and raised me, followed by 10 others! My Mom also taught all 11 of us at home for part of our childhood before we would head off to Nativity Catholic Grade School. My Dad worked long hours, eventually earning other degrees so that he could first become dean, then principal, and finally, when I was a sophomore, he was named Roncalli High School's first president. My Dad and Mom both sacrificed SO MUCH for us.

I remember, even as a young person, getting stared at by people, and I remember the comments they would make. I can still hear a dental receptionist asking my Mom "Are these all yours? You know how children are made right?" followed by a real insidious but ditzy chuckle, followed by a secretarial gum crackle. My Mom and Dad were always tight budget wise, and I'm sure at times ached with a desire to not have to take bags of clothes from other families so that we could have clothes. I'm sure my Mom and Dad had desires to simply go to Nordstrom and buy us and give us all our own new clothes and Gameboys and Reebok Pumps etc. I'm sure they at times really wished they could just get a new car and not have to drive a fifteen passenger van around. I'm sure at times they wanted really badly to just go to a restaurant and sit back and enjoy a big expensive meal instead of having to cut coupons and craft together economic meals on the stove.

But they chose life for us, and they chose sacrifice for themselves.

I often think about that ditzy secretary now when our family gets together almost every weekend for dinner to laugh and hang out. Some of the siblings might be out of town or busy with other obligations, but inevitably, all weekend long, every weekend, our family gets together. Sometimes, when we're out at a restaraunt, I see the couples who are alone with each other. They hardly talk to each other and the loneliness is palpable. A part of me feels bad that we're having so much fun with our 8 tables shoved together, telling stories, laughing good hearty and healthy laughs. Sometimes I wonder if one of the couples sitting in the restaurant quietly and solemnly is that dental secretary - who now has piles of money and can eat wherever she wants, but doesn't have hardly anyone to share it with. My heart breaks for the people who are alone, especially the ones who are alone because, when they could have been having children, they instead bought into the contraception lie and lived for themselves only.

I have a say today, and so do my ten younger brothers and sisters, because my parents chose life. Mom and Dad - thanks a million!!!

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Heidi Czerkes, Looking to Adopt a Child with Down Syndrom

I have a say because my mother, who was told to not get pregnant because it was "too risky" chose to give me life.

My sister and brother, four and five years after me, respectively, have a say because she again recognized the beauty in giving her children life, even though the "risks" were high. For this, I am forever thankful. My childhood - and those of my brother and sister - was a good one. We never wanted for love or nurture, even if we didn't have the newest toys and the "coolest" clothes.

I have a say because I was loved.

I recognize this more and more every day, as I watch my husband (an NFP-only OB/GYN) care for women who are in the same situation as my mother was. I see the love, the dedication, and the true compassion for these unborn children in the eyes of their mothers and their doctors. It is a beautiful sight.

I have a say, and have chosen to use my "say" by advocating for special needs children, waiting to be adopted. We're currently in the process of adoption a beautiful little boy with Down Syndrome into our family (we already have three biological boys). We want him to have a say, too.

I am forever grateful that I have a chance to stand up for life on a daily basis. The Devil is strong, but God - and Life - is stronger. Love never fails.

1 comment:

  1. Thank you for your say and all you and your husband do to promote life. I wish you all the best on your adoption.

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