as parents i know we wish a lot of things for our children: good friends, success in school, to be part of winning soccer teams ;), to find happiness and joy in this life, to have health, to have a strong sense of self, and to be comfortable in their own skin.
the second you birth a child there is a mantel placed on your shoulders to do all you can to make sure they are given all need and, within reason, what they want. there is a great responsibility to ensure they are loved, nurtured, and protected.
but accidents happen.
and invisible bullets fly. and make contact.
this is a story of hope.
several months ago i taught a workshop in arizona. my friend joy found a perfect family to be our models for the shoot. i corresponded with angie, the mom, via email before the workshop date to learn a little bit about them so i could go into the shoot with a concept of who they are. she shared their basics and then told me that she was most concerned with her daughter, kaelie, and how she would react with all of the cameras. kaelie is quiet by nature, shy, and happiest drawing and playing quietly, alone. i had an immediate affinity for you, and since she has been close to my heart. after the workshop she sent me a letter in the mail with a picture she drew; it’s on my corkboard in my office. i smile and think of her fondly, every time i look at it.
i have been thinking of her a great deal, lately.
kaelie was in a terrible accident a few weeks ago. one that left her skin riddled with severe hot water burns.
angie and justin’s responsibilities as her parents have heightened. everything they needed to do before for her is still present, but now they have an even greater challenge of first helping her heal, and second helping her find comfort in her new skin all while reminding her that her nature is divine and her spirit one of a new-born lion.
i love this little girl. very much. and i love what she is fighting for right now: comfort and acceptance of what happened and what will be.
kaelie was released from the burn unit last week, but the journey ahead is still uncharted.
what is charted is that she has a family who adores, supports, and loves her. i am certain her parents have wished her ailments on themselves a hundred times over. i have not doubt they have prayed away her pain, pleading it be transferred to their shoulders. i know they would trade places with her without thinking, because she is a part of them, in the heart of them.
some things are going to have to change, but the fact that they are her strongest support system will remain constent, her true north, from here to the indefinite.
kaelie will heal; i know it. she will also someday be able to show a tremendous amount of empathy to another person who will experience something similar to her. that’s how i make sense of things that happen that are non-sensical. we need to feel understood. one day she will make someone feel understood and accepted because she has walked and lived the path before them.
many of you have heard me share about my friend joy she too is friends with the tarver family and has worked tirelessly to put together a benefit auction in kaelie’s honor and to help support the funds for her recovery.
if you have a product or a service you would like to donate to the silent auction please head on over to facebook to the “we support the tarver family” page and click on the like button. then add your contribution, gift certificate, product, etc. to the discussion tab. if you aren’t on facebook then you can email your donation to joy at joy.grainger@gmail.com. 100% of the proceeds will go to the tarver family.
the auction will be open for bids starting august 23rd-27th and the live event will be held in kaelie’s home town of surprise, az on august 27th. 100% of the winning bids will be placed directly into an account through bank of america, established in kaelie’s name. if you would like to just make a monetary donation you can go to any bank of america, tell the teller you want to make a deposit into kaelie tarver’s account, and it will happen.
if you want to bid on an item you will need to either be present at the event or on facebook.
1. under the picture and decription of the item on facebook, put a “photo comment” that includes your name and your bid.
2. keep checking to make sure you are the highest bidder (donation will go to highest bidder, not the last bidder)
3. once the bidding closes all winners will be notified august 28th and items will be shipped within one week or vendor contact will be made to set up appointments,etc.
if you have any questions please email joy or tarverauction@gmail.com.
i hope she knows she is loved. i hope her family feels it too. i hope she knows she is going to be ok and that this life will still offer her everything is was going to before. i hope she continues to draw. i hope to see her soon.
i hope her heart is happy.
thank you in advance for any contributions you are able to make to the fund to help this little one heal. i am grateful for your generosity and i know they are too.
kaelie, i am hugging you, right now.
dear tarvers, each day is new. each day will get better. love and support to you all, kamee
