Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: THE WHOLE WORLD IN GOD’S HANDS (not the song) (05/28/15)
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TITLE: Silent Cries
By Hannah Gaudette
06/04/15 -
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I scurried toward the small, white doctor's office, a smile on my face. The wind howled around me, blowing the light snow through my scarf. It had been a cruel January in our mountain town, and February promised to be as much. But today, I was feeling warm inside.
I greeted the receptionist and took a seat in the bright waiting room. It was early yet, so there were only two others seated. But I paid them no mind. My thoughts swarmed around the new life I carried within me. Just yesterday, Noah and I had picked out a name for our unborn son: Nathan.
Today I was here to ensure all was well and our firstborn's heart was still beating strong.
Beside me, a woman who appeared to be in her late thirties, wearing a 'Save the Trees' shirt sat, calmly reading a magazine. She was Melissa Hobbs, who worked at the cafe nearest our house. I remembered the co-owner of the business filling in last month because Melissa was on maternity leave. After that, we hadn't heard anything.
“Boy or girl?” I asked.
She looked over at me and smiled politely. “Boy. But I'm just here for an abortion.”
I froze. Had she really said . . . no, she wouldn't. I knew that she had two wonderful, well-raised daughters at home. Surely she wasn't . . . “Melissa, are you serious?”
She nodded. “Certainly. Roland and I feel our family is more than complete now with Becky and Rachael. Wouldn't you agree?”
I swallowed, but my mouth was dry. Nathan kicked. No wonder. He was probably as mad as I was. My hand went to my stomach. Noah and I could never do that, no matter the circumstances.
“Mrs. Hobbs?” a nurse called from the doorway.
Melissa rose and I grabbed her hand. “Please, Melisa, don't go through with this.”
She scoffed and kept walking. I stayed put, practically frozen in place, even though my mind screamed to go after her, stop her, make her see what she was doing. I waited a long time without even looking in any direction other than Room 3, at the far end of the hall which I could see from here.
“Mrs. Adams?” a nurse called.
I numbly followed her to Room 2 and waited for the doctor a few minutes longer. All through the exam, I couldn't stop thinking about what was going on in the next room.
Afterward, my doctor stood back and smiled. “Well, Beth, your son is strong and healthy. His little heart's beating away.”
All else faded and I concentrated on those words. My heart delighted in them! To know that all was well, indeed. On the way out to my car, I thought about all those millions of babies killed before they had a chance to see the world, to take a real breath, to fulfill God's plan for their lives.
I sat down in the car, sort of in a daze. Tears welled in my eyes. Someone had to tell them the truth. Would my son grow up to do that? God had given us this child for a reason, a most special reason.
Familiar words came to mind: not a sparrow will fall to the ground without Him knowing. The children are like His sparrows, I thought. He knows them all by name and holds them close.
I prayed out loud, “God, bring forth their silent cries. Make us hear them.”
This world has come so far, I thought. We've fallen into darkness, in which we're blind and deaf. Someday, somehow, somewhere . . . God will make us hear the silent cries of those unborn kings and queens.
I started the car and pulled out of the driveway. I paused just long enough to see Melissa coming out of the clinic, looking discouraged and unsettled. Had she changed her mind? I could hope so. But one way or another, she was a creation of God. Held forever in His hand, just as her little son was, too.
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