The Power of Choice

I was still a teen when I discovered that I was pregnant that first time.

I’d barely began to live, yet I faced a choice.

I chose to be the best mother I could be.

It’s been a long time since I made that decision. That decision is what set me on the path I now trod.

In order to be the best mom I could be, I had to go it alone. I built a writing career to make that happen.

And it was my choice.

Life was a challenge at times because of the decision I made so many years ago. Before I embraced minimalism and frugality, it was a serious struggle.

I wouldn’t wish that struggle on anyone…unless it was their choice.

We all have our unique paths to trod. I cannot walk your path any more than you can walk mine. Because of that, I have no right to tell you what to do or how to live.

And yet now, I, along with my fellow females here in the US, are now being instructed.

We are not considered intelligent enough or human enough or even just enough to have the ability to decide what is best for us and our lives.

I don’t have a response to that. I’m still processing the fact that I, along with my daughters and granddaughters, now have less rights than we did.

Because back when I was a teenager I had the right to make a decision. I am glad I had the choice. And I believe other women should also have the ability to make that choice.

I resented the people in my life back then who attempted to remove my choice, just as I resent those who have taken away my ability to choose now.

Because over the years I wondered about the path I didn’t take. How different my life would have been if I’d not had a child at such a young age. I may have been able to go to school, get a degree, who knows?

But it was my choice, and I am thankful that I could make it.

I hope that one day women will regain the ability to choose that I had, regardless of the decision that they make.

Choice is important. Even if you do one thing or the other, having the ability to choose—

It means something. And it’s something that we have lost.

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13 thoughts on “The Power of Choice”

  1. A wonderful, compassionate sentiment, beautifully expressed. Thank you, Annie, from someone who made the opposite choice.

    1. I am so thankful you had the right to choose the option that you felt was best for you. For me, THAT is what’s important. We BOTH had the right to choose.

  2. Please consider moving to Canada. We look to the USA for cutting-edge medical research and high standards of care. We are saddened by how these same developments are meted out only to the rich. We grieve with our southern sisters who have been set back 60 years.

    1. Hello, Theresa!

      Thank you for your kind words. I’m watching the situation with a high level of concern, and I’m considering all options. While I hate the thought of leaving my home, I wonder what rights they will take next because this situation is getting a bit too close to “the Handmaid’s Tale” for comfort.

      Do you know of the requirements to move to Canada? I’m thinking a job at the least, but have you heard about asset requirements or anything?

      1. I also share the concern about the United States turning into a real life Handmaid’s Tale and have been interested in moving to Canada for years. My parents talked about it back in the 70’s and 80’s. I welcome any info you can provide.

  3. While I do not agree with abortion for the most part, I believe that it is a woman’s right to choose. I also made a choice for my first born to live though it derailed my then current plans. I’m sorry to see that we are talking steps backwards.

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