Becoming a Storyteller

I grew up watching my older sister battle with Ulcerative Colitis. She was diagnosed at the age of 5, and I didn't understand what was going on, for I was only 3 at the time. All I knew was something scary happening and my parents tried to protect all of us as much as they could. For the next 10+ years, I watched her take different medicines, have different operations, suffer through pain I still don't understand and shed so many tears it makes my heart ache.

And yet, life went on. Just like the quote from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, “happiness can be found in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” And my parents were able to turn on that light for us and enable us to just be kids - even my sister. They enabled us to still have an amazing childhood. They were able to be the strength for my entire family and in the end, we are all stronger because of it.

While this wasn't a sickness I experienced firsthand, I witnessed it and lived through it with my sister and my family. And my heart goes out to anyone struggling.

I am so hopeful to be in a position to build our vision that supports and provides a loving hand for those who need it. If we are capable of doing something, I think it means we should try. And if we can be the ones to turn on the light for someone else, then why wouldn't we?