Life Amid Horror

Facts of Life

“I just want to tell you that life is a wonderful thing, and the world is really full of remarkable people,” Sneha Mehta wrote to her child, who was only 16 weeks old in utero, following the March 22 bomb attacks at the Brussels Zaventem international airport.

When Sneha and her husband, Sameep Mehta, arrived in Brussels from Abu Dhabi, they were greeted with screams and chaos, as the ceiling of the airport started to collapse, according to CNN.

The Mehtas fled the airport, and a cab driver took them to a hospital, where an ultrasound showed the Mehtas’ baby peacefully sucking its thumb, unaware of the terror happening outside the womb, as CNA recounted.

According to CNN, the letter reads:

“Hi Sweetheart, I don’t know if we already acknowledged this with you in person, but when you were 16 weeks old, Mum and Dad were in an explosion at Brussels airport.
“And no matter where humanity is today, I just want to tell you that life is a wonderful thing, and the world is really full of remarkable people.
“You didn’t just give Mum and Dad faith and reason to live, you gave the awareness and presence of mind like never before.
“I felt more alive than I ever have, and I knew I had to protect you, so I was calm, composed and fully aware that we will survive.
“When we reached Sint-Augustinus emergency, and we saw you oblivious and sucking at your thumb at the ultrasound, and doing your general acrobatics, all the mistrust, hate and angst for the terrorist attack vaporized.
“I do hope with all my heart that you are born into a better world, and if not, then you do [your] absolute best to make it that. You are absolutely precious to us and have already been a hero today.
“I guess [because] the world has sent so much love and hope your way, you owe your life to reciprocating that goodness. May you always be brave and healthy.
“We love you beyond words, Mum and Dad.”

Read more

Midwest Catholicism Is Humble, Yet Powerful — Just Like Mary

The National Eucharist Pilgrimage’s ‘Marian Route’ highlights how the Church in the Midwest has had an overflow impact that belies...

Canonization of Pier Giorgio Frassati: A Saint for Every Young Person

COMMENTARY: The soon-to-be saint is the antidote to so much of what ails our world.

Strange Phenomena and Spiritual Warfare: A Catholic Convert’s Testimony

As soon as my family and I began the conversion process, we were inundated with strange occurrences in our home, but a house blessing...