At the heart of life and death in this debate is to understand how we define each. For instance, I associate life with the acquisition of a soul. So for me the question is “when does a child acquire a soul?” I also believe wholeheartedly that death begins before we see physical death. To me this means those who die are aware of its earliest stages. We see this manifest itself for adults and children. But also, some, not all of us, focus on the importance of connections beyond death. To those who do, we reckon that our deceased remain with us after they’re gone. I mention this because in my early attempts I had no awareness of my embryos. They never survived 8 weeks. Yet I still mourned for them because they were part of me. Then in 2011 I had dreams about my daughter a few months before I lost her. This connection with spirits is particularly important because even if not all pagans feel as I do, whatever our spiritualities are made of they are just as important as arguments of biology, stewardship, sacredness, or any other approach to this subject that shapes how it affects us each, personally.

You presented a new angle on personal responsibility than I’ve seen discussed previously. It is very commendable to see others take into consideration whether they can provide the environment necessary for raising children. Yet at the same time if one knows they are exceedingly fertile and continues to not use protection and the same thing happens repeatedly I think they ought to consider the weight of their decisions more thoroughly. They affect everyone involved.
Regardless of your stance on the subject, thank you for sharing this article.