This article is the second of a six-part series of testimonies from women saved by Efrat (the Committee for the Rescue of Israel's Babies) from undergoing unnecessary abortions. For Part One see here.
Yafit's story:
"You don’t come across a story like mine every day.
"About a year and a half ago, I decided to have an abortion, because the thought of becoming a mother terrified me. A neighbor of my parents, a volunteer at Efrat, tried really hard to explain to me that being a mother is a gift from heaven. Some women pay a fortune, spend so much mental energy and experience so much suffering to become a mother and unfortunately never get to be one. But none of this allayed my fears.
"I had just got married and my husband didn’t have a stable job. He had tried to start a series of small businesses in different fields, but nothing had taken off yet. We were hardly managing in our tiny apartment, paying rent and other expenses, and I was nervous to add a baby and all that it entailed, on top of it all.
"It didn’t matter how much help I was offered, I knew that chances were slim that I would agree to continue the pregnancy.
"The biggest surprise came four months later when I found out I was pregnant again. I was in total shock. My thoughts jumped to what that volunteer had told me about women who yearn for children and aren't able to have them and here I was: pregnant again shortly after I’d had an abortion.
"The ultrasound confirmed that I was carrying twins. It was too much for me bear, and the first thing that came to mind was to call that volunteer. I couldn’t even speak; all I did was cry. I told her that I didn’t know what I was crying over more: over the baby I’d lost or that because I’d so badly feared having to raise a child now I was going to have two and I had no idea how I was going to cope.
"She told me: 'Yafit, HaShem took pity on you and this time sent you two children: one of them is to make up for the one you lost.'
"That really comforted me. Looking back, I regret the abortion. The pressure I felt made me unreceptive and influenced me to make the wrong decision. Today, after the birth of my twins, I know that I wouldn’t give them up for anything in the world. Despite all our financial problems, I'm so happy.
"Efrat helped me so much, and my children have never lacked a thing since the day they were born. It’s important that women know that there is someone out there who can help them and that they shouldn’t make any hasty decisions. Money comes and goes but our children's lives are priceless."