Monday, March 21, 2011

World Down Syndrome Day


Today is World Down Syndrome Day :-) It's on 3-21 every year to represent the 3 copies of the 21st chromosome that people with Down syndrome have. A friend let me borrow the book Gifts, a collection of essays written by mothers of children with Down syndrome. I have been shocked that so many medical professionals assume that when a mother finds out mid-term that her baby has Down syndrome, she'll want to kill the baby (or "terminate the pregnancy," as they put it). WHAT??!!! Do these people not KNOW anyone with Down syndrome? Probably not -- they're stuck in their stuffy little clinics. How could anyone even consider "ending" someone as perfectly beautiful as Seth? Just because his life presents different challenges from those brought about by children like Joel, Makenzie, and Luke? That's ludicrous! MANY people with Down syndrome have NO medical problems, and many more have no serious health concerns. Seth was born with a hole in his heart, so he had open-heart surgery to repair it. His biggest health concern right now is that he's allergic to green beans and he needs a daily dose of Miralax to keep his bowels moving properly (i know -- tmi, but i'm trying to make a point). How many "normal" kids have so many more health problems than Seth has!

God blesses everyone who has the privilege of meeting Seth. Some people don't even really meet him and are still blessed by him. There's a lady at Seth's school who watches us walk from the school to the van every afternoon. Seth just makes her day because of his growing independence and his laughter. She rolls down her window some days to make a comment about how much she loves to watch him. I'm sure part of it is the entertainment of watching me try to get him to actually walk instead of lie down on the ground or lean over and lick the dirty snow and then catch him before he runs into the road. I believe, though, that Seth's mission in life is to make people smile. No matter how horrible your day is going, hang around with Seth for just a minute and you'll be smiling. You just can't help it!

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The Hofacker Family 2008