* For her protection, the child in this story is not included in photo above
The child of a prostitute hasn’t many options. What options there are, aren’t good. Depending on the circumstances, the child either lives in that world or is given away. Considering what that world looks like, giving the child away is the best option. That’s how we received Angelica (name changed for privacy issues).
We are thankful that Angelica’s mother made the decision to give her away. It sounds awful. It sounds cold and heartless. But it’s one of the most considerate, loving things she could have done. Angelica may never be reunited with her mother. We hope it never happens. Angelica may grow up with the desire to find her mother. We hope she doesn’t. She may mourn and grieve for her mother some day. And that’s ok. She may even grow up hating her mother for the abandonment. But we will always be thankful for it.
You see the life of a prostitute’s child can be not only dangerous, but sickening. Whether the child is immediately put to work servicing the sick and twisted desires of men, or groomed for service later in life, the future is the same. Male or female, the child will experience the darkest depths of humanity. Whether born in a brothel, on the street, or part of an organized sex trade, the child has mortgage value. He or she may be bought, sold, and traded like a commodity.
When we are quick to judge Angelica’s mother for giving her away, we overlook the fact that perhaps her decision should be applauded. Perhaps she should be thanked instead of ridiculed. Perhaps her decision was selfless instead of selfish. Either way, Angelica has been spared a life of abuse and exploitation. She doesn’t have to sleep in the same bed where her mother works. She doesn’t have to wait in another room or under the bed while mother does her job. She doesn’t have to be put into a drug induced sleep so she doesn’t interrupt the pleasure of the clients. Instead she just gets to be a kid.
Angelica gets to go to school, not work with her mother. She gets to play with children, not with adults. She laughs, not cries. She has friends, not customers. She has family, not strangers. She has Jesus, not satan. She has salvation, not service. She has love, not lust. Thanks to a loving God and a mother’s decision, Angelica has the life she deserves. Not the life of a prostitute’s child.
Please pray for Angelica as we recently learned that her only named father is the pimp that owns her mother. Please pray that the judge assigned to her case does not accept this man as a possible family member to live with. Please pray that God will reveal true family members that will be willing to take Angelica in to a loving Christian home, or that she becomes available for adoption into a Christian home. And of course we will keep her forever, if that is an option too.
