Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this guest post are solely those of the guest author.
“Incompatible with life.” “Fatal fetal anomaly.” “Lethal chromosomal defect.” “Anguished, short, and painful lives.” These are the phrases being used by the media recently to describe babies with Trisomy 18 in response to an abortion case in Texas with Kate Cox.
When our daughter, Melody, full Trisomy 18, was born close to 11 years ago, similar grim labels were placed on her. However, Melody’s beautiful life defies this narrative.
In sharp contrast with the current labels being placed on Trisomy 18 children, there is a more accurate word that describes them. One time I was studying the word “lovely” from Philippians 4:8. It means lovable, endearing, amiable, gracious, charming, pleasing. One commentator, Hurt, wrote it is, “that which calls forth love.” That is the best description of Melody I have ever heard.
I could write a book about stories in which Melody has called forth love, so to speak. She draws the best out in others with her sweet and charming ways. This is a phenomenon I witness on a daily basis. People who meet her are enamored with her. She never causes mischief. She never hurts anyone. She never demands her way. She smiles, laughs, reads books, loves music, swims, drives her pink Mercedes, and has quite a happy little life. She does have vulnerabilities when she is sick, but even then she does not complain. I do not claim it has been an easy road, but there has been joy in the journey, and we just love our little girl!
READ: Her pregnancy mirrored Kate Cox’s – but instead of abortion, doctors fought to save her baby
Every human being deserves the right to be protected from violence. We should not discriminate against human beings who have disabilities even if one does not have Melody’s quality of life. Human beings are valuable based on what they are, not on what they can do. For every human being the world over, equal rights are essential. If we believe that we all deserve equal treatment, then there must be something the same about all of us. The thing that is the same about us that best explains our equal rights is our humanness.
Children with an extra chromosome are no less human than any other child. Far too often, children with Trisomy 18 are killed by abortion because they are not seen as equally valuable human beings.
Photo provided by Jennifer Thenhaus.
Should an unborn baby with Trisomy 18 have her life cut short because she might not live very long? Let’s say a woman was not able to find out her child has trisomy 18 until she was born. Knowing there is a chance her baby might not live very long, would it be justified now to hire someone to kill her? If we agree you cannot kill a Trisomy 18 person after birth because of life expectancy, then why can we kill her in the womb?
Even if a baby with Trisomy 18 is only here for a brief time, we can choose to honor her with unconditional love, acceptance, and compassion regardless of her vulnerabilities. We can have the opportunity to hold her, cuddle her, and kiss her while she is here, just like we would any other baby. We can choose to treat her with dignity.
May we choose to cherish these lovely children!
To continue to follow Melody’s story see www.Melodysstory.com. This page has information and encouragement for those who have received a positive screening test for Trisomy 18.
