Death, Birth, Baptism, and a Little Hope

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Brian H. Gill's photo: Our Lady of Angels' Marian garden.
Our Lady of Angels’ Marian Garden, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. (2013)

My wife and I have six children. Four of them are still living.

We lost Joy very early in the pregnancy. By that time we were living in Sauk Centre and had two children. Following our culture's customs, we sealed what was left of Joy and the placenta for testing. But we buried her, briefly and very informally, in hallowed ground.

Time passed. Two more children joined the two who had been born before Joy.

Our sixth pregnancy gave no indication of trouble. My wife and I, and our four surviving children, were looking forward to seeing the youngest in our family. Contractions, when they started, weren't at the 50th percentile; but my memory tells me they were inside the 'normal' range....

More at A Catholic Citizen in America.

(Two of our children died before they could be baptized. I talk about that this week, and why I think hope is a reasonable option.)

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