I enjoy walking my dog each evening at sunset when the day winds down and all seems to get more peaceful. A lot of times I’ll call my mother and talk with her on these walks.

The other night our conversation turned toward her time living through the war in Germany. The stories she told me and the hardships she endured as a little girl are more than I can ever fathom or many Americans would ever have to deal with in these supposedly more modern times.

She was telling me about when the sirens started to go off it was time to head for the shelters, and then huddle and listen to the bombing and praying they don’t get hit. How ironic it was we Americans were the ones bombing my mother.

I then said had she been killed during any of those raids I certainly would not be talking with her and my life would never have existed. I then flashed on all the stories and videos of the recent exposure of Planned Parenthood, and the countless thousands of lives that are put to death when they were only weeks away at having a chance to see what the world had to offer them. That hit me kind of hard.

It’s easy to be flippant and say it’s not a life by rationalizing that thought process to fit a mindset. Or say, “I can’t have a baby right now,” for one reason or another and just snuff it out because the political correctness position is that it’s my body and I can do what I want.

Only the life that woman has and is living is because her mother gave her birth. If it were not for that realization those who make “it’s my body” argument could have been the one who had their tiny organs being sold off to places unknown instead.

Laws created by man are necessary to prevent chaos and anarchy but they are not foolproof and perfect and not necessarily exact in their meaning. They’re just that, words written on paper drafted by lawyers who say what we can and cannot do.

However, when it comes to something as sacrosanct as a human life, no human being should be allowed to make that decision based purely on the fact that you can just do so because the law says so. Even though, regrettably, the law does say so.

This country is already running amok disobeying federal laws without any repercussions. So if it’s OK for states to approve the smoking of dope and allow sanctuary cities despite it being against the federal law, why is it any different to not try to prevent runaway abortions and hold an organization like Planned Parenthood accountable?

And, as always, it gets down to politics. Human lives are used politically for a liberal agenda to make it clear that you can’t tell me what to do. If I want to kill a human being because I don’t think it’s one, you can’t stop me. Save the whales, stop the phony climate change, use windmills, those are really important things we need to deal with, but don’t tell me what I can do with a life I’m carrying. I created it, I can kill it.

I realize those are harsh words, and who am I to be able to tell a woman what to do? I can’t. I can’t ever even imagine the struggles a woman must feel at that time.

And I, nor anyone, can’t be judgmental since we’re not in that pair of shoes. But it’s an opinion and opinions don’t account for much other than, hopefully, stimulate dialogue and open up other thought processes. But if we don’t express opinions and voice opposing positions, where does that leave us?

We need to, hopefully, make women think twice about such an enormous decision, whatever side you’re on. We have all changed our minds over the years on a variety of things. When I was younger I never gave abortion a second thought. Even figured if I had gotten a girl pregnant I would have encouraged that option.

So, hopefully, when one gets older, you do get a little wiser and see things through a more worn pair of glasses — literally.

The call to defund Planned Parenthood is a start to make the point to stop this gruesome practice of selling body parts. I don’t want my taxes helping in any way.

But it needs to be more than that. Take the money saved on Planned Parenthood and set up more or better clinics where women can be counseled with options, and then make sure those options are available.

And though I’m not well-versed on the adoption process, we’ve all heard how difficult it can be. Maybe there’s some room there to simplify that process and in turn give a child a chance.

As for the rest of us, never forget to thank your mother for giving us the opportunity to live.

— Henry Schulte owns and operates Dos Pueblos Ranch. He has been politically active in the Santa Barbara community for years. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.