This past Friday, I along with about 15 other Penn State students traveled down to the DC area to participate in the Life Chain and unofficial March For Life. 

We left State College around 5am and started the drive through snow and darkness. Around 8:45am we arrived at Gravelly Point in Arlington Virginia. Once there, we joined about 100 other students to hold signs on the side of the highway as a witness of our Pro Life convictions to drivers driving by. At one point, a student from Penn State led a Rosary in which we participated in on our knees. 

After the Life Chain was shut down by the police, our group decided to move into DC. After scouting around for a while in an attempt to find other pro-lifers, we found a miscellaneous group of about 20 on the National Mall. We shared our pro life testimonies and set off into the city praying, cheering, and chatting. After stopping to pray a Rosary on a street corner we decided to march to the Supreme Court. About halfway along the route, we caught sight of the official March for Life. Our rag tag group, which had grown to around 50, joined up with the official March. Together, we somberly marched to the Supreme Court. On the way there, we were met with extreme military and police presence, but we continued on peacefully. 

Once at the Supreme Court we prayed, sang, and laid roses. After a few somber and prayerful moments in the back of the Supreme Court, we peacefully left.

Although this march looked radically different than most years, it was a beautifully moving experience.

-Mary