The Story of Anabelle

By Nancy Pando

There is no horizon when you are crawling through a tunnel. You put your head down and you keep going because word has it, a light could appear.

After Jaime and Bill’s loss, it was a relief to hear that their prenatal tests were just fine. This would be our third grandchild and we were well on our way to having a proper parade. And so it was, on the first day of April, Miss Anabelle Clara MacDonald made her debut.

The entire blue sky burst into glitter as we rejoiced over the little one with the dark golden curls and a mouth shaped like a perfect heart. One of the most poignant moments a parent can ever experience is when their child has a child; that’s when your child knows how you feel about them. The sun poured into the room that was filled with joy when, suddenly, our euphoria tumbled into darkness. It was as though a plummeting elevator jolted to a stop and let us off at the wrong floor.

Doctors and nurses entered the room and hovered over the baby. I kept asking, “What? What?? What???” But they didn’t answer. The room became more crowded as I tried to hide my panic.

The truth would come slowly and agonizingly. Anabelle was born with numerous medical issues — too many to count, too painful to write. The gravity in their voices caused a flash of heat to run down my head and surge through my arms. We would then discover an unbearable truth when the doctor revealed, “Anabelle has a genetic disorder so rare that no other case in the world exists.” With no name or map, together we walked blindly out of the hospital and into the wide unknown.

If you want to be inspired, just watch Anabelle’s parents, Jaime and Bill, who have championed through obstacles that no parents should ever, ever have to face. Despite countless setbacks, Miss Anabelle springs out of bed happier than a jack-in-the-box every morning. She is a completely sweet child who hugs you until you feel like you have reached up onto a cloud and caught a glimpse of heaven. She loves music; has to dance. Apparently she has a job because she often announces, “I am going to work.” She slings her caterpillar pocketbook over one shoulder that is packed with all of her necessities: plastic lipstick, half a cookie and some Legos.

This past July 13, Anabelle collapsed and was rushed to Children’s Hospital in Boston where she was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension. The chances of a child being diagnosed with this life-threatening disease are “one in a million.” It is a painful, costly fight that Bill and Jaime have ahead of them.

Anabelle will face this latest obstacle as she has done in times past because she is every bit the warrior her parents have raised her to be.

My deepest gratitude for your prayers.

People have asked how they can help — I have directed them toward a GoFundMe campaign created by Bill and Jaime’s good friends. There is no greater or lesser donation when it comes from the heart: gofundme.com/the-macdonald-family.

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=39615

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