Ten

So, Primero’s friend who is pregnant, the one we bought the pregnancy test for, her mother finally found out this past weekend that she is expecting. It was a very big, drama-filled ordeal. I, for one, am glad her mother finally found out so this young lady can see a doctor and make sure she is healthy. It’s sounding like she won’t be getting the abortion she had been talking about, but I don’t know anything other than the big fat mess she is in and how immature both her and the father-to-be are acting. Lovely. In addition to these two teenage parents-to-be, Primero has shared that he gave the left-over pregnancy test (why this boy bought a pack of three was beyond me, but there you go) to a different friend because his girlfriend might be pregnant. This friend’s sister was just sent away (they still do that?!?) because the family found out she was pregnant by a friend considered a brother. If you’ve lost count that’s a total of 3 accidental teenage pregnancies. Esperanza’s friend is due any moment, their cousin just had her baby shower over the weekend and both of Esperanza’s sisters (on her father’s side) are expecting. Four babies coming into the world with parents barely scraping by. And, as reported by Esperanza and Primero, Hermano’s girlfriend is expecting his second child, her first, I believe. Plus, two of the little one’s older siblings are expecting – one of their oldest brothers and one of their twin sister’s. That’s a grand total of 10 babies with the oldest momma being just 22 years young. Obviously, from a social-societal perspective one would like to know impending parents are prepared for their offspring. Supposedly teenage pregnancy is declining, so maybe our little area of the world in an anomaly, but there are 20 young lives about the be changed forever and all I can think is, I’m so glad it’s not my kid making me a very young grandmother!  It does spur on various conversations with Primero regarding, not just preventing unwanted pregnancy, but also STD’s and other relationship issues. And, sadly, I’ve begun having age-appropriate conversations with Chica Marie about waiting to date and have a baby. It occurred to me that all too soon I will be having the period talk with her because girls as young as 8 have started their periods and she needs to be prepared. I can’t use my own age as a gauge for her because we are not biologically related and I can’t ask her mother because we have no contact (by her mother’s choice). Asking her sister seems inappropriate, although I might be able to ask her grandmother. Regardless, I feel like this season of babies could just be the tip of the iceberg unless things drastically change by the time the little ones reach their teenage years. Lord have mercy!