We have so many days designated for special recognition (there is even a National Plum Pudding Day) that it's not surprising that few people know that October 15 has been designated by the U.S. Congress as National Pregnancy and Lost Infant Day. There is a lovely website which contains the transcript of the House discussion around passage of the resolution establishing this day of recognition and remembrance.
Loss of a pregnancy due to miscarriage is a silent pain. There are no baby pictures, no book of remembrance. Depending on the development stage of the fetus and the medical staff policies, there may or may not be even an image to hold in your heart. Losing a baby at or shortly after birth is also tragic in its own way. Both losses leave parents, and mothers especially, with broken hearts and broken dreams. For the rest of our lives we wonder "How would our family be different if little Jessie Clair had lived?" or "If Jay had lived what kind of big brother would he have been to the four girls? Or would we have had four more?"
Many people hope and believe that these lost little ones go straight to heaven and that someday their parents will have the chance to raise them in a world of peace and plenty. What a glorious, optimistic hope.
We'll never know the answer to the "what if?" but we can recognize the pain and heartache so many women suffer on this day or another day of remembrance. Let us take some time today and remember pregnancies and babies who never made it who are still "precious little strangers".
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