The first time I went on the March for Life, I was in seventh grade. I didn’t know what Pro-Life fully meant, but I did know that I did not agree with abortion. I was scared to go on the March which is why I was relieved to know my friend Grace was coming with me and that my sister’s friend, Becca (pictured below), was in our group too. I still remember someone asking why I was going to be missing two days of school in January. I told them I was going on the March with the youth group from Holy Spirit. Grace turned around and said “Who are you going with?” and I simply stated that it was the Holy Spirit youth group. Grace called me later that night and said “I’m coming on the March too!!”. Getting that phone call gave me (and my parents) a lot of relief. For my parents, it was a relief because they knew I would not be alone. For me, it was reassurance that what I was about to do, truly meant something.
I had a music lesson a few days before the March where I talked to my choir director, Lorrie. She talked to me about the March and why I was doing it. At the end of the conversation, she gave me a bracelet (cover photo). Lorrie got that bracelet after Roe v. Wade and it symbolized the Pro-Life movement. She said that if I took the bracelet with me, I would have her with me every step of the way. When I tried to give the bracelet back to Lorrie after the March, she told me to keep it. Years later when I mentioned the bracelet to my gym trainer, Lorrie’s son, he was shocked to hear that I had it. That bracelet was a part of who Lorrie is/was and it means the world to me that I have it.
Sophomore year of college I was asked to join a group of students and lead the March. I could not believe my eyes when I read the email at first. It felt like a dream come true. I had been on the March and.or helping with the March for six years at that point (I couldn’t be super involved in high school) and the idea of leading thousands of people felt like the jackpot to me. That year, the March was scheduled for the same time as the snow-pocolypse and so there was a concern about how many people were going to come. While some groups were unable to make the March because of the storm, the majority of the groups were and so the March didn’t feel different from other years, except for the speed. That year, the March seemed to go bar a lot faster and I think it was because I was at the front of it and I was a lot more excited than normal.
This past weekend I went to the March with my mom. It was the first time my mum had been on the March and I was really excited to be the one who gave her the experience. It was the warmest March I had been on and it was the first time I wasn’t there with a big group. Interestingly enough, I enjoyed the March the most this year because I was only with my mom. I loved going with a big group because I was with people who shared my beliefs and values. Big groups also energize me. However, since I only had to take a short metro ride instead of a day long bus ride, the big group was not needed to energize me.
I liked being able to share a special experience with the person who gave me life. Who gave me my faith and courage. And who gave me permission to go on my first March for Life when I was only in the seventh grade. I hope that one day I will be able to share the experiences of the March with my children. Because for me, the March is more than just abortion. It is about celebrating life in all stages.