Dear Woman Who Stood Ahead Of Me In Lane Three,

The young lady in front of you with her precious son may not have heard you mumbling under your breath, but I did. She may not have taken a step back in surprise as you mumbled "some people should just abort," thinking that nobody heard you, but I did.

And my heart broke. My heart broke because I saw something that you didn't see. What you saw was a little boy having a meltdown and a mom who you thought couldn't control her child. What you saw was a little boy throwing a fit while his mom tried to think of a million ways to calm him down without causing an even bigger scene.

I heard you as you shook your head in disgust and mumbled those words that filled me with shock. How could you stand there and think that this life should not have been granted? How could you think this child was not worthy of living?

While you stood there in your obvious disgust and judgment, do you want to know what I saw? I saw a mother who found out that her precious child had Down Syndrome, yet chose to love her child anyway, even before he was born. I saw a mother who has dealt with people like you and has done everything in her power to protect her child from your uncompassionate heart. I saw a mother who was tired and worn out, but who would not trade that child for anything in the world.

I saw a mother who sees her child's imperfections as nothing short of perfect. I saw a mother who has a heart full of so much compassion and love. I saw a mother who has a child that loves to sing and dance and whose favorite food is macaroni and cheese. I saw a mother who views her child as any other mother sees their child: as the purest and rawest form of everything they've ever dreamed and wanted right there before their very eyes.

You were a stranger in a Walmart, but you opened my eyes to how very precious life is. You may have looked at this child and saw that he was different. You may have looked at this child and thought that his mother was stupid for not making abortion an option. But when I looked at her, I saw how brave she was. I saw how loved that child was. And I saw how worthy of life he was. Where you were filled with hatred, you made me full of compassion.

It makes me sick to my stomach to realize how full of hate this world is, even towards a child who couldn't have been more than six years old. A child full of raw innocence, a child who understands a whole lot more than you think he does.

As he gets older, he's going to face a lot more trials and struggles than most people. He's going to face people like you on a daily basis. And my heart hurts because of that. But what I've come to realize is that he's a heck of a lot stronger than you and I will ever be.

He deserves this life just as much as either of us do.

I hope and I pray that somewhere down the line you'll change your mind. I hope that you will remember standing in line at Walmart, and that those words will come back to you, and that you will regret ever letting them slip past your lips. Because people with Down Syndrome, just like any other people with special needs, are still people. And thankfully, they love a lot more and judge a lot less than the rest of us. Maybe you'll learn something from this small boy one day and his strong mom that you were so quick to judge.

Sincerely,

The Girl Who Stood Behind You In Lane Three