When it comes to fighting for something that I believe in, things never go as planned. There are two reasons for that. The first is that getting the word across about what I believe in is a hassle, because most people never listen. The second is there is always going people that oppose you. For what I was fighting for, there will always be people that will never agree. Jan.25, 2013 as I stood in a huddle with seventeen other people the wind was freezing but that did not matter to me. I was with my church group in Washington D.C. fighting for something I believe.
This was my first time experiencing something like this, so I was not sure what to expect. It was cold to the point that I was freezing and could not feel my legs. I looked up to my two best friends, Jess and Maryann, with a small grin on my face. I was always the happy one of the group, so I had to calm their concern with assurance that I was okay. They smiled back and the huddle became even closer to me keeping all of us as warm as we could get in this chilling weather.
The march began quickly with a group who came during the rally that was happening near the capital. My group and I walked in a square shaped huddle, holding our crosses marked with the scripture “Exodus 20:13” on it along with the years that abortion had occurred over the years. Our hands were numb from the freezing temperatures, but as I glanced at the many people that stood for what I believed in, I felt a small strength to not give up on holding the cross we made. For almost three miles I walked on in the cold, and later in the snow. I was freezing and tired, but I was simply not going to give up on my goal to bring awareness to an issue. Once the march was done our group drove back to our retreat house. My friend sitting next to me on the charter bus told me that there were over five million people at the march. I was amazed at how many people were there. Then I felt the same warmth that I had felt on the march. I was not alone in my beliefs.
Once I got back home, I went back to my usual life. My mother asked me about the trip, and all the usual things a mother would say. Until she commented on a conversation she had with my relatives. “They are proud that you are fighting for what you believe in, but they don’t agree with you.” I wasn’t shocked that my family didn’t agree with me, because everyone has their own opinions, but it had hurt that I didn’t have people in my family that agreed with me.
School did not go as I planned. I was expecting people to admire what I was standing up for, but instead I was protested with questions that seemed too much for me to answer. I was angry and annoyed by how people thought that fighting against something that should be a person’s choice was wrong. They didn’t understand, and it was that moment that I wanted to go back in time to the march, so I could have people stand by me, so that I was not alone. On that day I went home and explained to my mom what happened. She gave me a very sympathetic gaze and asked me if I had answered their question. I told her no. That was where her expression changed, “You need facts. Tell them what you learned! They are not going to believe you if you don’t have solid facts! You need more than faith to fight for what you believe in.”
So I did just that. I found a small pamphlet that had all the facts about a babies growing in the womb. I found witness quotes from people that experienced an abortion. So, when people asked me questions about this topic I gave the pamphlet and showed them their answer.
It feels good to be right about something. But it felt even better to change people’s minds because I was right. My mother was right to have me get the facts, because whenever it comes to this world, seeing is believing. I needed to do more than just have faith in my beliefs. I need to prove my beliefs to other people so they understood why I am Pro-life. I know that people will not always agree with me, but that doesn’t mean I have to let them bother me. I need to just say what I have to say and then move on with my life, because I never know when something I say will change a heart.
