How Full of Life

By Jean McElwee Polking

As a lobbyist for the National Right to Life Federal Legislative Department, occasionally I find myself observing abortion-related disputes between lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Recently I attended a meeting of the House Armed Services Committee.

At issue was the question of federal funding of abortion on military bases. I watched pro-abortion members of Congress grow red in the face, ranting about a woman's "right to terminate her pregnancy." As they blustered about a woman's body, her rights, and her "choices," I could feel, from time to time, the little kicks of my unborn baby inside me.

Weeks earlier, my husband Christian and I had visited the obstetrician for an ultrasound. Twelve weeks pregnant, I could not yet feel the baby's movements. I felt no swelling or stretching. I had not gained much weight.

I did not look pregnant. (Many abortions are performed at or around twelve weeks of pregnancy, when the baby is supposedly just a "clump of cells.") But as an image formed on the screen in front of us, it was clear that my "product of conception" was unmistakably a tiny person, an individual human being.

Christian and I are both familiar with pictures of unborn babies at various stages of development. We expected to see our baby curled up in the fetal position, serenely suspended in the amniotic fluid - - a peaceful portrait of life in the womb. What we saw was a little different - - and even more wonderful!

Christian asked the doctor to hold the instrument still, as there was so much movement on the screen. The doctor smiled and explained that the instrument was perfectly still - - the movements were those of our baby. (Judging from the kicks we saw, our future soccer player!) I had no idea that the tiny, fragile baby developing inside me could be so vigorous and active.

The image grew sharper, and we watched as the baby drew knees up to the chest, then kicked legs out against the uterine wall. Arms wiggled, the head moved. The heartbeat was strong and steady.

I had known that I was a mother, but immediately I felt like a mother - - not just the mother of a developing baby, but the mother of this baby, whose shape and whose movements gave me a glimpse of the whole person, who my baby was and would be. Without consciously developing them, I now had ideas of my baby's personality and character. All of a sudden I felt such a closeness with this little one.

We took home pictures of our baby - - printouts from the ultrasound - - and showed them to friends. These images look much like the tranquil representations of fetal life which pro-lifers know so well. These pictures are priceless, but to watch our baby moving, to see the heart beating, the legs kicking - - this was wonderful beyond words. Our little baby, so alive and energetic!

Having been involved in the pro-life movement for years, I knew all about the stages of fetal development. Before the ultrasound, I was mindful of each landmark in my baby's growth.

At 18-25 days, I knew the heart would be beating. At 40-42 days, brain waves would be detectable. The baby would be able to grasp with the hand at eight weeks, and fingernails, bones, and teeth would begin to grow at around 12 weeks. I did not expect to be surprised by the ultrasound picture of my baby.

But nothing could have prepared me for the excitement and joy I would feel when I actually saw this child living and moving inside me. I always knew that from the moment of conception, my baby was a unique member of the human family. But until the ultrasound, I had not met this person.

Five weeks later I would finally begin to feel my baby kicking and moving - - one of the most wonderful sensations I have ever experienced. Years ago, before ultrasound, this was the first real confirmation for a mother that her baby was indeed alive inside her. I knew that I was only now feeling the baby's activity which had been going on for months.

In the committee room, the debate continued. Lawmakers raged about the constitutional rights of women to do as they choose with their bodies. Now in the fourth month of gestation, my baby was probably able to hear their words. If only they could see, as I have, how full of life the unborn child really is!