Monday, May 22, Alicia called me as I was driving to St. Martha's for Mass at 7:30 AM. She is very concerned about a young Mexican girl whom she spoke to on Saturday. She thinks she may come this morning for an abortion. I assured her that I would be there before the door opens. But the problem is that I do not speak Spanish, and this girl speaks only a little English. When I got to the center, Alicia was there talking to someone in their car. For a Monday the parking lot is rather empty. Hopefully that is a sign that fewer women are coming here for abortions.

Alicia and I talked to women and handed out information on better options than abortion. Alicia gives out information about a wrongful death case that the abortionist, Dr. Ann, lost a few years ago. She will take women in her car to a CPC which has ultrasound equipment but is located quite far away from this center. I spoke to a CPC director, Laura, about bringing people to a CPC. She strongly advised against it for several good reasons, and I agree with her. Alicia is willing to take the risk. Too bad there isn't a CPC within walking distance. The Mexican girl did not come.

Stan came to help. He tells people who are coming and going that this is not a place for Christians. Some people actually argue with him about that. I like when Stan is here. He has told me about difficult times in his life, which I think has made him very strong and wise. He wears a sign that says, "Pregnant? Call 1 800 no abort".

Chris came and said he has a court date today. He was accused of assault by a pro-abort who attacked him. I am sure that Chris would never assault anyone. He shows everyone who even comes near the center huge aborted baby pictures which he carries around with him. He covers his van, which is parked across the street, with more huge aborted baby pictures. They are horrifying. He gets in people's face. Kathy, Stan, and I have a different approach. Alicia is somewhere in between. Even though we do not agree on how to approach women to turn them away from this wretched place, we understand that Satan is the divider and that he will win if we fail to stand together.

When Kathy arrived, we began our prayers. Chris leaves us alone during this time. Most of the women who will have an abortion are inside the clinic by 9:30 AM. We pray loudly so that everyone inside the clinic can hear us. Usually some will come out to smoke, make a phone call, or go to their car. That is another opportunity for us to persuade them to leave. Kathy is in charge. She arranges for one person to do the talking, while the others concentrate on praying. This works very well. It is impossible to do both. I am the talker when I am there. I think that is because the others have been coming for years, and they have talked plenty!

On Tuesday, May 23, I was alone at the abortion center early on because Stan was with the Sisters of Charity. A mother and daughter came first. I asked her if her daughter is pregnant. She looked me right in the eyes and said, "no, I am". She was young enough, but I knew that was a lie. I acted like I did not hear her say that. I gave her options for a better way. I usually make the point that she is a mother now, she has a baby in her womb...it's just a reality check.

Next, two women who looked like either sisters or lesbians got out of a car. They were very tall and thin. They had bright red streaks running through their black hair which was severely pulled back in a ponytail. They both had on tight jeans and red knit tops. Their features were very sharp. They refused to make eye contact with me when they came to the sidewalk. They were both talking and laughing as if they were walking in to a tattoo parlor. They would not respond to anything I said.

Carl, a homeless man, came by and asked me if I was a reporter from the News. I asked him why he keeps asking me that. He said I look like one. I asked him if that was good or bad, and he just laughed. He has no idea what we are doing at the center. He talked about his newspaper and other things, but I have trouble understanding him.

Then Charles came by to catch the 10 AM bus. I have not seen him for awhile and asked him about his leg. He said it is better. As we talked, Joe, Richard, and Kathy came to help and pray. I can tell that Charles likes talking to the men, especially Stan. How about those Tigers?

We started to pray and Charles joined us for the first time. Kathy explained to him how we pray and what our prayers mean, and I gave him our prayer sheet while Kathy gave him a Rosary. He prayed the entire time and even knelt with us for the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy. I felt bad when the bus came and he struggled to get up to catch it. I think his leg still hurts.

While we prayed the two strange looking women came out of the abortion center. I stood up to try to talk with them, but one of them shouted, "fuck you", and then began to mock me. Everything they said was crass and caustic. After that, they mocked our prayers and went into fits of laughter. A woman who came for an abortion stepped out of the clinic for a cigarette, and they ran to her and pulled her into the parking lot away from me. I told her that they cannot help her. They fired more insults at me. The poor woman did not know what to do so she went to sit in her car. I thought maybe we should say the St. Michael the Archangel prayer early! I kept my eyes on them the entire time and continued to pray facing them...for the sake of His Sorrowful Passion, have Mercy on us and on the whole world.

We gathered our things to leave, and Chris came to take over. He usually stays until the abortion clinic closes at 2 PM. As I walked to my car, the song he was singing at the abortion center door started to fade away, " ....Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red, black and white, they are precious in His sight......."