Courage For Carter
Carter is a such a goofy and smart little guy, his momma has shared that his favorite things include learning the bones inside the human body, astronomy, Addams Family, aviation, arachnids, math, Star Wars, construction, and everything that’s a How-to to teach himself. A few weeks ago his right side became impaired and after testing he was diagnosed with DIPG. He is currently going through six weeks of radiation to help reduce the size of his tumor which unfortunately can't be operated on. Carter's mom originally shared a post to help others understand what he is going through. I'm going to copy and paste a bit and then link the rest for anyone wanting to read more.
"DIPG" stands for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma. It is a malignant brain tumor that typically affects school-aged children. The median age at diagnosis is just 6 years of age, although tumors have also been reported in infants, pre-school aged children, older teens and even adults. The most frequently diagnosed age range is 5-9 years old. All races, genders and backgrounds are affected. DIPG is widely understood to be the most aggressive and deadliest form of cancer in existence." ---To read the rest please follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/.../a.68363456.../1624027047755994/
Nobody wants to read that about a child, I actually deleted one of the statistics because it was just too hard to read. Right now the Kings are living this reality but choose to find the positives. Joanna, Carters mom, shared this, "The initial shock has passed and now our family is embracing every day we have together and making the best of it! We plan to make a lot of memories and show him not only how great life is, but the amazing and fun world we live in too! We want him to be his happiest self and accomplish so many of his dreams. He deserves the best!"
When Joanna told me about Carter and why they were wanting family pictures it broke my heart, like it would anyones. Kids having cancer it's an absolutely awful thing that makes no sense, but with Carter being the same age as my son I just couldn't shake the thoughts of what all he is going to have to endure in the coming months. I cried not just for Carter but for his parents too. I hugged my babies hard, and I prayed so much for the King family to have strength for whatever is coming their way.
I will admit, when it came time for their session I was nervous. Normally, unless I'm at a big event, sessions like these are where I'm in my element. But knowing how important these photo's are to their family I just had to make sure that I could deliver. When Joanna got there she warned me that Carter hadn't been in the best of moods lately because of the medicine he is on which was understandable. I wasn't sure what to expect but when it came time for the first big family picture he gave me the biggest smile he could. Throughout the session he sat on a blanket and cuddled his family, played with his favorite things that were brought to be in some of his shots, and was just a happy and content kiddo. If his right side hadn't been impaired from the tumor you honestly wouldn't have even known what he was going through.
After we had taken pictures for a while I was so blessed to step away from my camera and spend a small bit of time with Carter. I will forever be thankful to his family for that. I learned that on top of the things listed above that he loves ice cream too, he couldn't wait to get home and eat some. We chatted about the Addams family--we both like Wednesday, went for a small walk, he liked my camera so with my help he took some pictures of his family and some cool tree's, and he even let me carry him to the car.
I love capturing memories for all of my clients, but this is one that will forever be with me. Carter is so special and so loved. I know he will fight as hard as he can, and I pray for him and his family to find the strength they need to give Carter every possible chance and make the most of the coming months.
Please share this post, or any of the links above. They need as much help as they can possibly get. Say a prayer for not only Carter, but his family too. They all need to know how loved and supported they are.
Thank you King family for letting me have a peek into your world for a few hours, your family is beautiful and no matter how hard this journey gets, please know that you have so many people rooting for all of you.
