Life is Worth Living

            "I can't bring a child into this horrible world!" The root to the abortion and euthanasia mindset is the belief that life isn't worth living. "My agony is so great that I cannot bear to live to see another sunrise on this miserable planet!" I might have gotten a bit dramatic with that last one.

            As pro-life storytellers, we need to combat this mindset and show that life is worth living. Does this mean we tell stories of characters that never have problems and skate through life?

            Of course not! A story without conflict isn't a story at all. I have a niece and two nephews, and I can tell you that even shows meant for toddlers have some conflict. (Usually resolved by counting or filling in the missing color of a pattern.)

            No, you want to give your characters lots of conflict. You want to show your readers that even the hardest life is worth living! You don't have to give every lead character you write a diagnosis of cancer, determine what the right problems are for your story.

           The easiest way to show a life is worth living is to give your protagonist a goal that only they can fulfill. You might even want to give your supporting characters goals unique to them. Every story should have a goal, but as pro-life storytellers, we should be careful with what the goal is.

            "But, Mariah!" you say, "My main character is going to realize at the end that what he wanted wasn't what he needed!" Slow down! Just be careful with both what he wants and needs. It's all in how you portray it. Usually the audience gets the vibe that the protagonist is going for the wrong thing. Make sure they get the vibe.

            "Bu-but Mariah!" you say, "My protagonist is going to die at the end!" Okay, it is hard to show that life is worth living with a dead protagonist. But did she die for something worth dying for? Good. Now give the supporting cast a reason to live on after her death. Maybe she died saving another character. Now that character pursues the dream he's been putting on hold to honor the main character's memory.

            "But, Mariah!" Hold it right there! If you have some other ending or other thing that conflicts with portraying life as worth living, you can write in the comments and tell me your problem. I'll help you figure something out.

            Do you have any other ideas of how you can show that life is worth living? Share them in the comments!