Right to Life

This post will be a bit different from my usual musings. Normally I'm full of stories about my life and family, but with non-stop politics swirling around it is difficult to concentrate on much else.

Rarely will you find me in a political debate, because whatever I have to say is probably not going to sway anybody's opinion. Most political views are based on our upbringing and our experiences in our own little corners of the world. Nobody has walked in my shoes, or I in theirs. An issue I feel strongly about because of my life experience may be offensive to others. So, I am not putting this out there to change anyone's mind, but rather to share with my friends and family a little bit of what makes me tick.

I guess you could call me a "Right to Lifer." My religious beliefs and my choice of career bear out that statement. The sanctity of life is central to my religion. Taking care of others is my calling, and trying to keep them healthy is in my soul.

One of my grandchildren with Andy, Lachelle, has Down Syndrome and she truly is a blessing.

I am not in favor of abortion.

But, in my mind, "Right to Life" should take into consideration more than fetuses.

How about the people in this country who are dying because they can’t afford proper medical care? What about THEIR right to life?

How about the adults and children who may have their lives shortened because of lack of nutrition? What about THEIR right to life?

I don't even want to get started on the subject of young service members dying in a war that increasingly appears to have been started on false pretexts, not to mention the troops who return alive but are cared for in horrific conditions. What about THEIR right to life?

My job as a school nurse is not about bandaids and boo-boos. I see silent suffering and the effects of poverty on a daily basis. One great need in my clinics, as well as nationwide, is affordable dental care. There are children dying because of lack of dental care, not because of parental neglect, but because of the prohibitive cost of dental treatment and dental insurance.

Senior citizens have to choose between paying for their medicine and paying for food.

Because of all of this, I find myself with one "right to life" debate weighing in one hand, and another "right to life" debate weighing in the other hand.

My vote is, in part, going to depend on which hand weighs the most.