The Goodness of Life

Emily Jerger reflects on the value of human life and the ways she has experienced a culture of life. 

In reflecting on the beauty and goodness of human life and our need to defend and protect it, I started thinking about my grandma. My grandma had a wonderful giggle. I would hear it when she greeted us at the door or when something surprised and delighted her. There were times when we would come to visit her on the farm and find out she had picked fresh raspberries to offer to us. I remember the way she fluffed my pillow and tucked me in at night when I was sleeping on her couch in the living room. As a poor college student, I was surprised by her generosity one year when she gave me extra Christmas cash. She was thoughtful, loving, and warm. We always felt welcome at her home.  

She was a woman who struck me as being content. I never heard her complain, or argue, or get angry. Perhaps she had faults that were only seen by a few, but to me, she was a simple, hard-working woman who loved her family and whose kitchen always smelled amazing.   

When my grandma was a little girl, she was hit by a car. Thankfully, she survived and went on to get married, have a number of children, and live into her nineties. If she had died that day I would not be here, my mother would not be here, my husband would not have his wife, and our child would not have his parents. One person can make a tremendous impact for generations to come. More often than not, we take this for granted. 

Considering Family Trees  

Family trees are remarkable things. They demonstrate our dependence on one another. My dad’s last birthday celebration really struck me in this way. My half-sister, his daughter from a previous marriage, hosted the party. Her son and his children sat around the living room. My dad’s great grandson sat on his lap while he ate his cake. My brother and I were also present with our spouses.  

One man had influenced the existence of eight people in that room and had brought together a handful more via the spouses that were in attendance. This is a life’s legacy. The value of human life is traced from generation to generation. When we hear narratives around promoting abortion, no one talks about how killing a child in the womb can erase entire family trees. 

Protecting and Defending Life Needs to Be a Personal Issue  

When it comes to protecting and defending life from the womb, it is important for us to not only consider it as a political, religious, legal, or philosophical issue. It needs to be a personal issue for us. When I think about the damage that abortion has done, I think about the middle-school classmate of mine who told us she already had three abortions. I think about a friend of mine closer to my mom’s age who had an abortion during her first marriage and lived with regret so many years later. I think about a man I know who often stands and prays outside Planned Parenthood because his sister became suicidal after having had an abortion. I think about what could have happened to my son.  

When my husband and I were accepted into the adoption program and our home study completed, we hoped we would become parents immediately. As is often the case; however, we had to wait. I knew someone involved in a crisis pregnancy center, so I reached out to her with our profile book and information in the case that she would meet an expectant mom who wanted to make an adoption plan.   

What she shared with me opened my eyes. It turns out that many women prefer abortion to adoption, thinking that a child placed for adoption will be harmed and have a terrible life. Even should a woman be adoption-minded, often her family will shame her for thinking of handing her child over to strangers and encourage her to abort instead. As it turned out, adoption is becoming more and more rare.  

As an adoptive mom, I recognize how easy it would have been for my son to be aborted. Thanks be to God that his teen mom realized there are people who would long to raise a child and looked for a couple that could not have children of their own. She not only gave us the gift of her child, but the possibility of a gift for generations to come, should our son one day get married and have children of his own. 

A Culture of Life  

I have been reflecting on what it means to promote a culture of life. I see this culture in concrete acts of support and love for mothers and their children. When my husband’s community of diaconate candidates held a surprise baby shower and blessed us with a supply of diapers and wipes, I experienced a culture of life. After bringing my son home from the hospital, when friends reached out to me and asked if I needed anything, I experienced a culture of life.   

In the government support I receive through the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program which has provided my son with formula, I have been blessed and supported as a mom tasked with the care of human life. As a child experiencing the warmth of grandma’s home, enjoying the cooked meals we ate sitting around the table, and hearing her laughter, I was experiencing a culture of life.  

How have you experienced a culture of life? 

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Copyright 2026 Emily Jerger
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