The Righteous Indignation of twelve year olds

something I thought about today -- a true story

It's funny, the things that pop into your head as you get older. Today, it was a woman she met in passing in 1982. Being Catholic, Kara had been recruited to canvass for the anti-abortion movement. She was shown the now much maligned "Silent Scream" movie which graphically depicts an abortion, and "demonstrates" how the fetus feels pain and tries to get away from the doctor's instruments.

 

The practice of indoctrinating children to campaign for causes they couldn't possibly understand Kara now believes is morally repugnant, akin to recruiting children to be Nazis or religious zealots. Back then, that was just how things were done. The end justifies the means, as it were.

 

Kara was on a main street in a busy northern city, handing out pamphlets to women, urging them to pick a side and join the righteous campaign against abortion. At the time, it seemed perfectly logical to Kara that an alternative to abortion was adoption. Never mind that a woman had to carry the baby to term in order to accomplish the goal of human incubator/baby machine. That was the price she paid for premarital sex and poor planning. Ironically, the Catholic church also preached heavily against birth control, but again, her very Catholic mother had long since drawn her moral lines in the sand that justified her own view that preventing conception was not the same as murdering the unborn.

 

A tall, strikingly beautiful woman listened to Kara with great empathy. She had tears in her eyes. Kara felt triumphant. She had won over another Pro Choicer. She had prevailed.

 

The woman looked at her, and asked, quietly.  "How old are you?" 

 

"I am twelve," Kara declared proudly. She felt very worldly, and knowledgeable, and not at all uninformed.

 

The woman smiled a kind smile, and politely handed back the pamphlet. "There will come a day when you will understand the world is not so black and white", she said, turning and walking away before Kara had a chance to reply.

 

Kara was indignant. She hadn't even had sex yet, but was sure she'd never change her mind on abortion.

 

Six years later, Kara won first prize in an international essay contest. The main premise of her essay was that there were no moral absolutes in life. She used the abortion "debate" as a prime example, and cited instances in which abortion would be both legally and morally "right" despite the fact that it was, in fact, ensuring that a life conceived was never born.

 

As Kara stood up, reciting that essay to a crowd of a couple thousand people, she thought of that woman in the street. The one with tears in her eyes. The one who understood that, with time, most of us come to believe that life is not so easily divided into Pro-this or Anti-that, all white, or all black, but there is always a shade between.

Author's Note

this is not intended as a pro-choice, anti-abortion debate, but rather, a tale of growing up.

Reviews

[John Alexander McFadyen]

A sensitive parable on a touchy subject told in a smooth fashion. I was left wondering the aetiology of the transformation as the simple encounter with the woman did not appear quite so persuasive?

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you. The transformation was not because of the woman. But because of growing up. Perhaps I will expand upon the whys someday.

[Paul Bell]

It's a debate that will never go away. I always think myself. Your body, your choice. Someone shouting at you sure isn't going to help the situation.

[Lyn Anderson]

That is true about most things. Isn't it.

[Ted Kniffen]

KL, some come of age and develop their own way of thinking in spite of their parents views . Unfortunately there are many sides to this debate, with no right side or wrong side. We each must decide what is our own belief and let others have theirs. We can only hope the correct decision is made by the mother.

[Lyn Anderson]

I think for me it came to a point of realising that demanding another human being grow and birth a child is not something reasonable for society at large to decide, even if it's not the decision I would be likely to make.

[1VJ]

There are so many shades of life in which we find it too difficult to decide which is clear and/or unclouded or the darkest of choices. Outstanding & very well written contemplative read.

[Lyn Anderson]

Easy to be convinced when one is young and inexperienced. For some of us with age comes more knowledge and understanding, if not necessarily agreement.

[1VJ]

I had a brief moment to log in, I wasn't going to mention it since I didn't want to take away from this poignant piece, but could you please fix Indgination. :) I'll be back to read more of you.

[Lyn Anderson]

thanks. Funny I never noticed because one always reads what one meant!

[Kenneth The Poet]

I was that way at age 12 too. Pro-life and idiotic, and yet not much has changed it that regard. I'm in my mid-thirties now and the father of a child that came from a battle with an unforgiving nature. I personally hold pro-life opinions for my person and my wife is the same way, yet I'm quite negative about the debate as a whole. I could go on, but that's not the point of my review. This is about growing up and changing opinions is part of that process. This is one of the best short stories I've read in some time.

Thank you for this.

[Lyn Anderson]

You are very welcome, and most definitely, my own choice is different from others, but I recognise now the injustice in presuming choice for someone else.

[Einstein Noodle]

black and white .... each in sharp contrast to the other ...makes lines and delineation easy ...your story reminds me of how much i have changed since the tender age of 18 ... and the slower changes that came before that ... our perspectives, i think, are morphing all the time ... trying to fit pieces .. find a common thread that runs through ...only to start letting go ;)
though not your intent, abortion is going to be contentious ... being present for the births of all my children, the experience imprinted a certain awe and joy that came upon all present ..no matter the believe .. i see the same potential in an infant, toddler, teen, and adult in the unborn .. so sad that circumstances, situations and beliefs bring people to have to make such a choice :(
E.

[Lyn Anderson]

Most definitely, thank you. I too have mixed feelings still about that. However, my own personal belief systems do not mean others need follow suit when their bodies or lives are at risk.

[Einstein Noodle]

we all stand alone in death says i ;))))) no pointing fingers then ..i am pretty sure ... love you my friend...with hugs! :)

[Shannon]

This is a great story. Interesting how only some of us learn to contextualize truth in the real world. And some, like the mother in the story do not. Excellent illustration.

My only suggestion is to show us the speech, like the encounter with the woman.

[Lyn Anderson]

The speech is a long one. I would perhaps abbreviate a portion of it for the purposes of this piece.

[Shannon]

I agree. Some version of it would be a great counterpoint.

[Papaya]

As children we are sometimes exposed to things we don't quite understand. As teens we begin to understand and question why, as adults we become sad and in some cases angry at being used.
Such a great write. Nothing is ever black and white. The truth is in the context.

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you, I appreciate it. Nice to see you.

[Lorry]

That's what happens in so many aspects of life, people trying to push the beliefs that were pushed onto them on people, by people who never stop to think how unchristian their black or white actions are to those without a voice. I do hope the crying woman heard about the child's opinion as a free thinking adult.
Sometimes we judge through ignorance, but sometimes that ignorance changes into knowledge and understanding. Where would we all be without empathy.
Great write KL.

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you. I would hope most adults learn to modify rather than solidify, unconsidered and often irrational belief systems. I have seen the latter, unfortunately.

[barleygirl]

All abortion opinions aside, this is one of your best writings that I've read so far. Your persuasive style is gently convincing without any evidence of that teensy abrasive edge you can sometimes get when you hold a strong opinion one way or the other about anything. I love the overall premise that nothing is black & white, a concept I've also used to explain my dad the rapist/inspiration of my childhood. You have presented just the perfect amount of information & description to make your point effectively and also to show us this 12-yo Kara as a person we want to hug (((HUGS)))

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you for the wonderful review. Yes, I know I have that edge I need to tone down on occasion -- Every once in a while the 12 year old comes out in me. I remember your description of just that -- most things in life just can't be black or white. Funny enough, on a personal level, I still think an abortion is not a choice I could make. However, with time, I came to understand that ultimately, that is the point. Until such a time as babies can be raised in jars, we don't really have a right to judge, now do we?