Need a Good Cry?

Through a comment on someone else's blog, I heard about a website (http://www.nowilaymedowntosleep.com/) that specializes in infant bereavement photography to preserve memories for families who have lost babies through pre-term labor or other difficulties. I just visited that site for the first time and--oh my goodness--I could not even look at it for more than a few minutes without breaking down and weeping, much less read the personal stories of loss. So I stopped looking at it! But what a wonderful service it is. I'd never heard of it before; but apparently, it is a group of photographers in different cities who provide their services to bereaved parents, even if the parents can't pay. I was amazed and touched by how sensitively the babies were portrayed, even if they were not nearly full-term and thus lacked the basic development that we associate with newborns. I cannot imagine the pain of going through such a loss. Our own miscarriage was hard enough, and it was so early on in the pregnancy! To have felt a child move, to have seen the heartbeat through an ultrasound, to have known whether it was a boy or a girl...and then to lose it...I simply cannot imagine. A lady that we know is likely headed for this situation, and I am taking some dinner to her tomorrow--such a small way to help--I wish I could do more. She is 5 months pregnant, but major health complications and pre-term labor make it unlikely that the baby will survive. I pray so fervently that God's perfect will be done and that His comforting love and sustaining grace cover this family and draw them to Him.