love you whoever you are

The lyrics to the first verse of "Happy Birthday" by Flipsyde are:

Happy Birthday

So make a wish

Please accept my apologies
I wonder what would have been
Would you have been a little angel or an angel of sin?
Tom-boy running round hanging with all the guys
Or a little tough boy with beautiful brown eyes?
I paid for the murder before they determined the sex
Choosing our life over your life meant your death
And you never got a chance to even open your eyes
Sometimes I wonder as a fetus if you fought for your life
Would you have been a little genius in love with math?
Would you have played in your school clothes

and made me mad?
Would you have been a little rapper like your poppa The Piper?
Would you have made me quit smoking

by finding one of my lighters?
I wonder about your skin tone the shape of your nose
And the way you would have laughed and talked fast or slow
I think about it every year so I picked up a pen

Happy Birthday
Love you whoever you would have been

Happy Birthday

I stumbled across this song a couple months ago, and again last week. Last week, I heard it right before I got the mail, and found that Brett's daddy had ordered him a couple of Packer onesies. Bryan loves his son, a son that he did not create. Bryan's love is filled with anticipation and joy. In this song, The Piper also shares that he loves his unborn child...the child he chose to abort. But The Piper's love is filled with regret and sorrow. The Piper admits the selfishness and fear the brought him to end the life of his baby, and that he made a mistake. Part of what breaks my heart about this song is that, true to the statistics, The Piper explores two options: abortion and parenting the child. Among unplanned pregnancies in the US, about half choose to abort, about half choose to parent, and 2% place their child for adoption. I wonder how the lyrics of this song would have been different if The Piper had chosen to place his baby in the arms of a loving adoptive family. Maybe it would have gone something like this:

Happy Birthday

So make a wish

Please accept my sacrifice

I wonder how you've been

Are you a little angel or do you give your parents trouble?

Little boy running around playing with your dad

Little boy growing big with beautiful brown eyes

I chose to give you the family I couldn't be, little boy.

I chose to give you breathe, and a future you deserve

I saw you open your eyes in the nurse's arms

As I said good bye, I'm glad I fought for your life

Your parents say you're a little genius in love with math.

They say sometimes you disobey, but they love you anyway

Wonder if you'll be a little rapper like your poppa The Piper.

Hope you listen to your mom and dad, they seemed nice.

Your skin is bronze and you have my nose.

Hope you know how much I love you

I think about you every year, so I picked up a pen

Happy Birthday

Love you whoever you are

Happy Birthday

Brett, we love you whoever you are. You are growing in our hearts. We're so thankful your first family is choosing to give you life.