Nothing tugs at heartstrings like a new baby. Precious, helpless, vulnerable, innocent. These are all words that come to mind when talking about a newborn.
But in the case of a mother who left her baby boy in a Wal-Mart bathroom after giving birth, one word seems to crop up repeatedly: Why?
Why did this happen? Why would a woman feel she had no other choice but to leave her baby? Why did she feel she had nowhere else to turn?
Why is an important question in this case. But we also need to ask others what we can do to keep this from happening again. Where are the gaps in services? If the mother comes forward, how will our community respond? Is there room for compassion and understanding? How can we support this child who comes into the world in such sad circumstances?
To the credit of this community, this last question - how we will support the newborn - is already being answered.
Early in his young life, this baby boy has had people looking out for him: store staff who provided a quick response and called 911; emergency service workers; police officers investigating the case; social service workers; and countless people sending good thoughts his way as he stays at hospital in Saskatoon, where he is reported to be in serious but stable condition.
And people are sending more than good thoughts. Wal-Mart is accepting donations at the Prince Albert store for the newborn. The question of this baby's future is one that won't be answered quickly. But if we begin the process of understanding how he came into the world so tragically, hopefully, the question of "why" won't arise again.
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