Comments (page 6330)

on Wednesday, January 23rd 2008

Babies do get put into institutions. It happens less now because of other options and the lack of facilities that care for babies. Babies aren't usually put into an institution because of lack of love. They are put there out of love. I am going to tell you in as few words as possible what I mean. A little over eighteen years ago I was a very young single mother with a newborn baby girl. Ultrasounds during my pregnancy revealed that her brain had developed differently than most. She had what is know as agenesis of the corpus callosum and it is rare without much known about it. Probably the most famous person with this condition is Kim Peek (or the real life Rain Man). I was young, single and with my whole life ahead of me when they handed me this baby and told me they didn't even know if she would know who I was. They recommended immediate placement in an institution. I looked at my baby and decided to take her home and do whatever I could for as long as I could. That was my decision. However, I had parents that where there for me. Maybe without them I couldn't have done it. She has many problems but is far more independent than they predicted. There will come a day when I can't take care of her any more. And in that day I will be thankful that there are people who chose to take care of those that can't take care of themselves. I took her home because I had a family that could help me. If I had been all alone I may not have been able to do it. Thank God there are people who will give of themselves to the babies who need more than their birth mothers can give. A mother's love doesn't always come from just one heart. Sometimes it comes from a combination of many hearts working together.