I'm Not Sorry There Was You- by Bette Popillo
(In memory of her babies, Michael Elliot, Jan.2 1980, and Ann Elizabeth, Jan. 10, 1981)
I'm not sorry there was you.
I'm not sorry for those joyful days of anticipation
and planning when we learned we had conceived you.
I'm not sorry for all those dreamy days of wonderful
preoccupation with thoughts of you.
I'm not sorry for those warm special feelings of wonder
and awe as I felt you move within me.
I'm not sorry for the excitement I watched on
your father's face as he felt those magical "first kicks."
I'm not sorry for the way you opened my eyes
to all that I am blessed with.
I'm not sorry that your loss inspired in me a richer,
deeper sense of the preciousness of life and
a better understanding of what is really important.
I'm not sorry for the way in which your births
and deaths pulled my family members even closer together than they were before.
I'm not sorry for my ever-present sense of joy
and thankfulness when I watch your sister.
I'm not sorry that because of your deaths your
father and I never take a day with her for granted.
I'm not sorry that your deaths have helped to increase
my sensitivity and compassion for people and their sufferings.
I'm not sorry that because of you I have been
compelled to help foster a better understanding of
pregnancy loss and what is needed by parents experiencing it.
I'm not sorry that during your brief lives you
enriched mine for than words can say.
No, I'm not sorry there was you.
