I got pregnant at 21. I’d been dating this guy for two and a half months. I was lucky enough to live in a state with (mostly) accessible options. I had to drive two hours away since the Planned Parenthood in my city was booked so far out. Having an abortion wasn’t even a choice for me. I didn’t have to weigh my options. I knew it was the only way forward.
Sometimes I think about what it’d be like if I hadn’t. Not in a way of regret, but more like “holy shit I would have a five year old child right now.” Now more than ever I feel so confident I made the right decision. After the 2024 election, I grieved the daughter I would never have. She would have had my middle name. Yet she will never exist, because it could be illegal for doctors to save my life. Because how could I send her to school everyday, knowing she may not come home. And if my daughter was born my son, how do I know the world would be kind to her. How could I bring life to a planet that will not be livable. I love my mother. And I will never be one.
