The Day Old Baby Who Spoke

My one-day-old sister Marianne died when I was Six. I never even saw her alive, yet she influenced my childhood as few others did. Her birth and death had a decisive impact on my sisters and me, as well as on my own children years later. It was 1947, and my family lived in the backwoods of Paraguay, in a small Christian commune that ran a primitive hospital. Just before Marianne's birth, after two days of extremely difficult, life-threatening labor, my mother's heart suddenly gave out. Luckily, the staff was able to resuscitate her, but she remained unconscious. My father pleaded with the doctors to perform a cesarean, but he was warned, “Your wife will die if we operate. The only way to save her is to abort the baby; otherwise both mother and baby will be lost.”
It was an incredibly difficult situation: both my parents believed firmly in the sanctity of all life. Papa went out into the woods to pray. When he returned, Mama had regained consciousness, though she remained in critical condition. Then, unexpectedly, the baby was delivered naturally. She had a small bruise on her head from the instruments, but otherwise she seemed healthy. My parents were certain that God had intervened. Yet Mama sensed that not all was well with her child. Marianne did not cry, nor did she open her eyes. The next day, she died. A few weeks later, Mama wrote to her brother in Germany:

"It is so hard to grasp that this child, whom we longed for so greatly, and who was born in such pain, left us before we got to know what kind of person she would be. Sometimes it all seems so unreal, like a fleeting dream. But the more I think about it, the more grateful I am Marianne was born alive. She brought us great joy, if only for a few hours, and she led us to a deeper love for one another. In this way, despite the brevity of her life, I feel that she fulfilled a task on earth. As for Papa, he thanked God for the rest of his life that the baby had not been aborted. The experience cemented his belief that no matter how long or short a soul lives on earth, it always has a divine purpose."


He passed this belief on to me in the form of a deep reverence not only for the mystery of birth, but also of death, and for the sacredness of every human life, regardless of its span. This story told by Jonathan Kozol in his book titled “Be Not Afraid” never fails to inspire me, this day old baby made such a massive impact in the lives of her immediate family, though little she fulfilled a purpose on earth by bringing love to her family. Many live for years and die without any meaningful impact, in your years on earth, how many lives have you touched, how many people will think of you many years from now and glorify God for bringing you to earth. This day old child never talked, but her impact spoke volumes!!

Have you spoken today?
Who have you impacted today?
To speak, ACT NOW!!