A Fetus At 7 Weeks Gestation

In the church bulletin today there was an interesting little article about a doctor who was one of the leading abortion doctors in the US in the 1970's. He had campaigned for the legalization of abortion, and he had performed over 60,000 abortions. He believed in what he was doing; that he was providing a service that guaranteed a woman's right to control her own body.

But a medical breakthrough changed his mind, when the ultrasound was introduced in 1976. For the first time the window was opened and he could see inside the uterus. He could see a heart, with all 4 chambers of the heart pumping blood. And as we have become more sophisticated with the ultrasound images, you can now see the baby moving, sucking his thumb, making expressions. And what woman who has ever been pregnant has not felt their child as he experienced "hiccups?"

As our knowledge has grown regarding these little babies, as yet unborn, we are able to get a much clearer picture of just who and what they are. So, now we know all the medical facts (if we care to find out), and now we can even see our babies before they are even born. But the question is, what will people do with this information?

Aren't you glad your mother didn't choose to have an abortion when she was pregnant with you?

To learn more, and to see more, click on this link. A warning though, you will not be able to look at the images and not be moved. www.priestsforlife.org/.../fetaldevelopment.htm

Snowflakes

Rather than drive all the way home from work the other night, and have to just turn around and drive to church, I went on to the church building early. I picked up a magazine in Scott's office (our secretary) and started looking at it. Found an interesting article I wanted to share.

It was titled, "Why Not Use The Leftover Embryos?" It was talking about in vitro fertilization, and explained how the eggs are taken from the female and introduced to the guy's sperm in a test tube. The eggs become fertilized and are implanted in the womb of the woman to grow into a baby.

That's pretty straight forward. But what really caught my eye, what I didn't know, was that the procedure usually results in from 5 to 12 eggs being fertilized! Normally, they don't implant more than 3 of these in the woman's womb because of safety issues (multiple births). By implanting 3 of them, the odds of actually having 1 healthy baby are more likely.

Now do the math. If they fertilize 12 eggs, and they implant 3 of them into the uterus, that leaves 9 fertilized, living embryos out there. What do they do with them? Most of them are frozen in liquid nitrogen. This gives the potential parents time to see what happened with the 3 that were implanted. Did they all take? Are they going to have a single child? Twins? Triplets? Eventually they will have to make some kind of decision of what to do with the left-overs.

They have 3 options: donate them to research (where they will ultimately be destroyed); let them thaw out (they will die); OR (and this option is so exciting!) donate them to couples who are unable to conceive themselves! How great is that idea!

That's where Snowflakes comes in. It's an agency that adopts a healthy embryo to a couple. So a couple that is in this situation now have a choice that does not involve the destruction of human life! How cool is that!

I believe that life begins at conception. As human beings, we are made in the image of God. That makes us special, because God has given us a soul that will live forever and ever. Unlike God, who has no beginning or end, we do indeed have a beginning (at conception) and our physical bodies will have an end (at death). But our soul will live forever.

Check out their website! http://www.nightlight.org/snowflakes_description.asp

Rain In Seattle - Day # 27 and counting

I used to live in Seattle for over 25 years. Now I have children and grandchildren living there so I try to keep up with what's happening up there. It looks like Seattle is giving a go at beating it's old record of raining the most consecutive days in a roll. I remember the days and days that were gray, overcast, drizzly, wet, and cold. Pretty miserable in the winter, I can tell you! But on the other hand, the state of Washington is the most beautiful place in the world. On a clear, sunny day when you can see Mount Rainier in the distance, or the Olympics or the Cascade Mountains...there is nothing more beautiful!

The Seattle Times today reported that Friday, another rainy day, was the 26th successive day of rain. Seattle had 0.57 of an inch of rain Thursday for a total of 12.41 inches since Dec. 19, when the city started on the path toward its own record, which it could match on Jan. 20 or beat on Jan. 21. Seattle's wet streak — which stood at 26 days Friday — may exceed the previous record of 33 consecutive days, set in 1953 .

Here's to day 27...and counting!

Addenum: Ends: 27 consecutive days of rain ended over the weekend as sunny skies end run on rain. Alas, it was not meant to be! This is one record I'm sure no one is dissapointed in not making!

Life And Death

As a nurse working for Hospice, I have been present at the time of death for many of my patients. There is such a spiritual aspect to this act of dying. No two families seem to react to the death of their loved one the same. Some cry, some are in kind of a state of shock or disbelief, and some are even relieved to see their loved one finally "not hurting anymore" or they believe they are "in a better place".

It is such a personal time for a family, to be losing their loved one to death. To essentially have a stranger in their home sharing in that experience with them is something I don't take lightly. Yet death is a certainty of life. It is a moment that we will all face at some point; when our soul will leave our body behind and be reunited with the God who made us. In some ways I suppose I could compare my presence at the end of this life to being present when a new soul enters this world during birth.

I have had the opportunity to be present when two of my three grandchildren were born. In fact, when my daughter had her second child, not only was I there, but so was her mother-in-law and her six year old daughter. Oh, her husband was there too! It's such a wonder to see a new life enter the world. God has given us the ability to have children, and though it is within the laws of nature, the wonder of it all is so awesome. We do have an awesome God!

Children can't hide their feelings and emotions. They are out there for anyone who will see. When Gabriel was born, Aminah went through several emotions, watching the birth of her little brother. A little disbelief, maybe a little worry about her mom, but in the end just a six year old thinking it was all kind of a "yucky" business!

I thank God for the fact that He has given us life. I know our time here on earth is short . Even if we live to be a hundred years old, that would be only a moment when compared to how long eternity will be. Because we are made in the image of God, He has given us a soul that will live forever and ever. Our birth is the beginning, and in death we enter the doorway into eternal life. Where we spend that eternity will be determinded by how we have lived our life during our brief time here on earth.

God's forgiveness is like becoming a new born baby again, with our past mistakes forgiven and a clean slate laid out in front of us.

Subliminal Suggestion Anyone?

This morning when I was brushing my teeth I left the water faucet on. I looked down into the sink with all that water just going down the drain. Suddenly I remembered that commercial where a goldfish is in the little fish bowl and the water level is slowly getting lower and lower. The poor fish is going to die because some person is just too lazy to turn off the faucet while she's brushing her teeth! So I turned the faucet off because I figured I was just wasting water...either that or because I wanted to save the goldfish!

I guess my thought processes are a result of having just finished a book by Dean Koontz (can we say weird!) called "Night Chills". It hits on an interesting subject; behavior modification and subliminal suggestion. I guess the basic idea is that advertisers (or whoever) can reach our innermost selves, our subconscious mind, and in some way influence or control us. Like when you go to the movies and at the beginning of the previews you get this "Hungry?" question flashing across the screen. That probably gets you thinking about it, yeah...maybe I am a little hungry. Then they show all that buttery popcorn, pouring out like some weird colored snow, along with all those Junior Mints and those Good and Plenty Licorice candies. Then you start thinking, well if I'm going to eat all that, I know I"ll need something to drink too. Before that thought is complete, what do they show but a very large, ice cold Coca Cola with the water droplets running down the outside of the cup. You're hooked.

Remember the rumour going around that our poor innocent youth were being influenced in a very terrible way by playing their records? Apparently if you played it backwards (how could you play a record backwards on a record player??) it would say something like "Satan is Lord" and would make you a Satan worshiper. I think it was called back masking, or something like that. (I can't remember what my point was for bringing that up).

When my children were little, probably about 6 and 8 I wanted to make sure they knew that just because they saw something on the t.v. didn't mean it was real. I explained how they could make just about anything look real, and make-believe on the t.v. is just not the same thing as real-real life. I must have said something that stuck with my daughter that day. Because a few days later she and I was sitting on the couch watching something on t.v. A commercial came on, the one where the pretty girl shakes back her long blond hair and puts her hands on her hips saying, "Never let them see you sweat!" My daughter looked up at me with her big hazel eyes and said, "That's not true, mom!"

Who says kids never listen!