As I sit here in a hospital room with the quiet sounds of my new daughter providing the soundtrack, I cannot help but think about the countless number of women struggling with an unplanned pregnancy. This is a bit odd to think about considering my wife just gave birth to our latest addition, but my thoughts have found their destination tonight, so I am going to write about them.
I just witnessed a gift; a gift that was orchestrated by God. Seeing a baby born is nothing short of amazing…seeing my baby born, a life I helped create, is, well, awe-inspiring. This awe comes for a number of reasons. This awe finds its genesis at our genesis, conception. It truly boggles my mind when I try and think through how we were designed to create life. This thought then takes me to appointment after appointment where we were allowed to witness the continued growth of our child, little Evelyn. This growth was substantial and evident in each ultrasound. This growth also points me to my wife and her God-given ability to carry a child to term.
The awe I have in the creation of our child is equal to the awe I have in my wife. The body transformation, pain, uncomfortableness, aches, and swelling is enough to sideline the toughest of people, but my wife never complained, never stopped, and even went to work earlier today. My love and respect for this woman is further cemented as I have now watched her give birth for the third time. It is amazing how love can deepen when you watch or observe your spouse in immense pain as she willingly delivers a human. If that doesn’t create in you a sense of awe, you may need to check your pulse.
My thoughts tonight are a bit puzzling, though. One side of me is in celebration mode thinking about the future of our family and how Evelyn is going to inspire, encourage, and love us, while the other side of me cannot help but think about the patients we saw at HOPE today and this week; patients that were excited, overwhelmed, shocked, sad, or in denial as they heard the news of their pregnancy test; patients that are married, divorced, in relationships, or recently had an encounter with someone they just met; patients that society or family has rejected; patients that were unsure of their future before they walked into HOPE’s doors, and now find themselves unsure and in crisis; patients that are in need, but are truly clueless to what could possibly meet that need.
My thoughts make their way to these patients because I am afraid about their future. Will they choose life, termination, or adoption? Will their decision create havoc in their lives with families and friends? Do they have anyone in their life they can talk to or share their news with? Will they seek comfort in the arms of another sexual partner, in pills, abortion, or in someone that truly loves them? These are the realities of many of our patients, but this doesn’t have to be the future of these patients.
HOPE is here to assist these women and make sure that the weight of the news they may receive from us will not be the crushing blow that so many of our patients think it to be. Tonight I am thankful that the same people, HOPE’s staff, which has loved me and my family through our pregnancy, are offering that same kind of love to the strangers, our patients that come into the doors at HOPE. You see, their love is not conditional on a relationship or on what I bring to the table. Their love is there for the taking. Their love is free and unchained. They get up every day seeking to love. They desire to see people make good decisions and achieve their goals. They desire to see girls become women, and nervous mothers become loving and caring mommies.
So, as I sit here and get lost in my thoughts and fret on my inability to know the future of our patients, I can find hope in HOPE, because I know that regardless of who walks in the door tomorrow at 2700 Painter Avenue, I know without a doubt they will be loved, served, and cared for well. I can lay down tonight with full confidence that men and women in crisis today and every day have a place they can go for help; a place full of people that will always go the extra mile for those in need; a place saturated in love and with a mission to share that love with others.
My wife and I are thankful for your prayers in the glorious expansion of the Wood family, and we are also thankful that the love we have received from you is freely given to others as well. What a gift we have in being able to participate in the creation of life.
posted by Andrew Wood, Executive Director of Hope Resource Center
