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She chose empowerment instead of abortion. Now she uses her art to save other babies.
Elspeth McKellar was studying classical painting in Sydney, Australia, and had just ended an abusive relationship. Though still grappling with the psychological injuries from that relationship she agreed to go to dinner with a man she had recently met. What happened that night would result in an unplanned pregnancy that left McKellar wondering who fathered her child.
McKellar told Live Action News, “On the evening of the date, I thought he was directing me to a local restaurant. Instead, he led me to his house where I endured a traumatic nonconsensual sexual encounter.”
Stunned and afraid, McKellar acquiesced to the assault, thinking it was the safest way to get out of the situation and finally escape.
Reeling from the deception, McKellar found her way home but couldn’t bring herself to go inside. Instead, she went to her ex-boyfriend’s place, someone who had also sexually abused her.
“I felt disconnected somehow,” she said. “I wanted to avoid dealing with any of my emotions. I thought that by sleeping with my ex-boyfriend, it would erase the experience I suffered through hours earlier.”
Five weeks later, McKellar discovered she was pregnant. She knew one of the two men had fathered her child but wasn’t sure who.
She noted, “Despite all the challenges I was dealing with, I still had earned a scholarship and was doing well in my studies. Suddenly, I am dealing with an unexpected pregnancy. I felt as if the whole world had stopped.”
When the pregnancy was confirmed by her doctor, McKellar wondered how she was going to tell her family and friends. The circumstances around the pregnancy were so disturbing and felt shameful.
“I felt alone and scared,” McKellar said, “My life had no stability. I was extremely stressed and was ultimately kicked out of the place where I was living.”
A friend then connected her with someone who allowed McKellar to live in her shed for six weeks while she wrapped up her life in Sydney and moved back to her hometown of Adelaide.
“I had never considered having an abortion. I instinctively knew I was a mother," McKellar said. "But when I had a paternity test done and learned my ex-boyfriend fathered my child, he tried to convince me to have an abortion.”
It wasn’t just her ex-boyfriend who pressured her to end the pregnancy; well-meaning friends did so as well.
“I had friends who told me I’d be ruining my life or giving my baby a bad life," she said. "One offered to cause a miscarriage by pushing me down the stairs.”
When she returned to Adelaide, she found her parents to be wonderfully supportive, telling her they’d do everything they could to help her get through the pregnancy and subsequent motherhood.
“Everyone who provided for me made a difference during this challenging time,” she said. “I had briefly thought about killing myself, but there was a fight in me that kept me going. I cannot underestimate the importance of community support.”
For McKellar, she realized that some of the most painful and tough experiences are often ones that can redirect one’s life journey.
“I was on a destructive path," she recalled. "Being a mother put me on the road to healing, helping me become a better version of myself. Having an abortion would have broken me.”
The birthing experience, she says, was both profound and healing. It was a natural physiological process characterized by a high level of energy coursing through her body – much like an electrical surge.
"I felt so in control of my body while giving birth to my son," McKellar said. "For me, as a woman, it is an empowering moment.”
She believes birth is a natural process that moves in synchronicity with nature, not against it.
“Abortion, on the other hand, is an interruption to that natural process,” she noted.
While McKellar and her son stayed with her family for a year, she soon found herself trying to find another place to live when her family moved overseas.
“I even tried to get back with my son’s father but that didn’t work out,” she said. “I was homeless again and had to fight to get back on my feet.”
She knew she was good at painting, but she needed some flexibility as a single mother. She took a position as a tattoo artist for some time, yet felt called to do more to save the lives of preborn babies.
McKellar said:
“Despite all the challenges I’d been through, my son was my biggest blessing of my life. He was happy and healthy and expanded my capacity to love. I knew women were being lied to that abortion is a solution to their problems.”
As she reclaimed her Christian roots, she became convicted that abortion is the most urgent issue in the present day. “I had friends who opened the door for me to do pro-life work with Bird Flip,” she said. “At first, it was casual work, then it blossomed from there.”
Bird Flip, a pro-life advocacy group, seeks to flip the narrative on abortion by engaging the younger demographic to speak out publicly against abortion.
McKellar said, “We’re taking on the abortion industry and proclaiming that abortion is murder, which goes against the mainstream in Australia.”
The organization hosts rallies and events and promotes pro-life bills through government lobbying. The use of videos and other content helps to educate the public about the devastation of abortion.
“Our content creation has evolved to include paintings, and that’s where I come in,” McKellar said.
She has painted large banners depicting graphic scenes, like a needle containing a lethal dose of potassium chloride piercing the heart of a preborn child.
“I was disappointed when my pregnancy interrupted my career as a painter and felt sad to see others in my field advance,” McKellar said. “But now, I’m using my talent in a big way to further the pro-life cause. Art can be useful in the fight to save babies.”
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
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·She chose empowerment instead of abortion. Now she uses her art to save other babies.
Elspeth McKellar was studying classical painting in Sydney, Australia, and had just ended an abusive relationship. Though still grappling with the psychological injuries from that relationship she agreed to go to dinner with a man she had recently met. What happened that night would result in an unplanned pregnancy that left McKellar wondering who fathered her child.
McKellar told Live Action News, “On the evening of the date, I thought he was directing me to a local restaurant. Instead, he led me to his house where I endured a traumatic nonconsensual sexual encounter.”
Stunned and afraid, McKellar acquiesced to the assault, thinking it was the safest way to get out of the situation and finally escape.
Reeling from the deception, McKellar found her way home but couldn’t bring herself to go inside. Instead, she went to her ex-boyfriend’s place, someone who had also sexually abused her.
“I felt disconnected somehow,” she said. “I wanted to avoid dealing with any of my emotions. I thought that by sleeping with my ex-boyfriend, it would erase the experience I suffered through hours earlier.”
Five weeks later, McKellar discovered she was pregnant. She knew one of the two men had fathered her child but wasn’t sure who.
She noted, “Despite all the challenges I was dealing with, I still had earned a scholarship and was doing well in my studies. Suddenly, I am dealing with an unexpected pregnancy. I felt as if the whole world had stopped.”
When the pregnancy was confirmed by her doctor, McKellar wondered how she was going to tell her family and friends. The circumstances around the pregnancy were so disturbing and felt shameful.
“I felt alone and scared,” McKellar said, “My life had no stability. I was extremely stressed and was ultimately kicked out of the place where I was living.”
A friend then connected her with someone who allowed McKellar to live in her shed for six weeks while she wrapped up her life in Sydney and moved back to her hometown of Adelaide.
“I had never considered having an abortion. I instinctively knew I was a mother," McKellar said. "But when I had a paternity test done and learned my ex-boyfriend fathered my child, he tried to convince me to have an abortion.”
It wasn’t just her ex-boyfriend who pressured her to end the pregnancy; well-meaning friends did so as well.
“I had friends who told me I’d be ruining my life or giving my baby a bad life," she said. "One offered to cause a miscarriage by pushing me down the stairs.”
When she returned to Adelaide, she found her parents to be wonderfully supportive, telling her they’d do everything they could to help her get through the pregnancy and subsequent motherhood.
“Everyone who provided for me made a difference during this challenging time,” she said. “I had briefly thought about killing myself, but there was a fight in me that kept me going. I cannot underestimate the importance of community support.”
For McKellar, she realized that some of the most painful and tough experiences are often ones that can redirect one’s life journey.
“I was on a destructive path," she recalled. "Being a mother put me on the road to healing, helping me become a better version of myself. Having an abortion would have broken me.”
The birthing experience, she says, was both profound and healing. It was a natural physiological process characterized by a high level of energy coursing through her body – much like an electrical surge.
"I felt so in control of my body while giving birth to my son," McKellar said. "For me, as a woman, it is an empowering moment.”
She believes birth is a natural process that moves in synchronicity with nature, not against it.
“Abortion, on the other hand, is an interruption to that natural process,” she noted.
While McKellar and her son stayed with her family for a year, she soon found herself trying to find another place to live when her family moved overseas.
“I even tried to get back with my son’s father but that didn’t work out,” she said. “I was homeless again and had to fight to get back on my feet.”
She knew she was good at painting, but she needed some flexibility as a single mother. She took a position as a tattoo artist for some time, yet felt called to do more to save the lives of preborn babies.
McKellar said:
“Despite all the challenges I’d been through, my son was my biggest blessing of my life. He was happy and healthy and expanded my capacity to love. I knew women were being lied to that abortion is a solution to their problems.”
As she reclaimed her Christian roots, she became convicted that abortion is the most urgent issue in the present day. “I had friends who opened the door for me to do pro-life work with Bird Flip,” she said. “At first, it was casual work, then it blossomed from there.”
Bird Flip, a pro-life advocacy group, seeks to flip the narrative on abortion by engaging the younger demographic to speak out publicly against abortion.
McKellar said, “We’re taking on the abortion industry and proclaiming that abortion is murder, which goes against the mainstream in Australia.”
The organization hosts rallies and events and promotes pro-life bills through government lobbying. The use of videos and other content helps to educate the public about the devastation of abortion.
“Our content creation has evolved to include paintings, and that’s where I come in,” McKellar said.
She has painted large banners depicting graphic scenes, like a needle containing a lethal dose of potassium chloride piercing the heart of a preborn child.
“I was disappointed when my pregnancy interrupted my career as a painter and felt sad to see others in my field advance,” McKellar said. “But now, I’m using my talent in a big way to further the pro-life cause. Art can be useful in the fight to save babies.”
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
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