Man, How Many Children Do You Really Have? The Abandoned Family is a deeply personal and unflinching memoir by Laval W. Belle that examines responsibility, consequence, and redemption through a man’s lived experience. Beginning with a life-altering moment at fifteen, Belle traces the emotional, spiritual, and relational impact of choices made in adolescence and carried into adulthood.

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Raised in a fractured household marked by absence, survival, and silence, Belle grew up determined to escape poverty and dysfunction at all costs. What followed was outward success, but also unresolved guilt and denial surrounding abortion, fatherhood, and abandonment. Years later, attending a memorial service for parents affected by abortion becomes a turning point—forcing Belle to confront truths he had long avoided.

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Written with candor and conviction, The Abandoned Family is not a political argument but a call to personal accountability and healing. Belle speaks directly to men—young and old—challenging them to acknowledge their role in family breakdown, embrace responsibility, and pursue restoration. This book offers a path toward forgiveness, reconciliation, and the possibility of rebuilding what was once abandoned.