Parenting is an act of unconditional love. It encompasses all forms of care, including physical, emotional, spiritual, and social, that are directed toward the growth of a child from infancy to adulthood. It involves the intricacies of raising a child and is not restricted to a biological relationship between the child and the parent. This implies that anyone who has unconditional love for a child, regardless of their biological relationship with the child, could be a parent.
Although parenting involves much love and may be rewarding in the long run, it also comes with its own difficulties. In most cases, the expectations of parents when expecting a child are different from the reality they are faced with when the child arrives. Since children come with no manual, the difference between expectations and reality usually puts so much pressure on parents. Also, some children come with unexpected issues, including terminal illness and genetic conditions, among others that some parents have to deal with.
While parenting is hard, parenting a child with a terminal illness is remarkably harder. Apart from all the energy and resources that go into caring for the child, the learning curve and the emotional aspect are also intensive. The journey of becoming a parent to a terminally ill child starts when the child is diagnosed, with a phase of grieving and denial, and progresses through several stages to one where they are fully accepting of the situation and fully care for the child.
Unfortunately, there is not always a light at the end of the tunnel for several of these parents, as their children can succumb to the terminal illness. In one such case, a mom, Magalli Jimenez, who lost her daughter, Ava Skye, to cancer, shared an Instagram on Aug. 23, 2022, featuring her last moments.
Skye was a happy and healthy baby when she was born, but when she was 13 months old, Jimenez noticed she was in pain and took her to see a doctor. It was during the hospital trip that Skye was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma, which, according to the Cleaveland Clinic, is a rare type of cancer that affects muscle tissue.
Although crushed by the diagnosis, Jimenez rose to the challenge, caring for Ava and documenting her treatment progress on her Instagram page. Skye went from undergoing chemotherapy treatments to entering remission. However, the joy was short-lived when she relapsed and had to be put on hospice care, eventually giving up the battle on Aug. 21, 2022.
After Ava’s passing, Jimenez took to Instagram to share an emotional video that was captured the day before she passed. In the video, Jimenez revealed that although Skyke was weak and could barely talk, she managed to sing her favorite song.
“And then she sang to me her favorite song..” Jimenez wrote in the video.
In the video, Skye looked lovingly at her mom while singing the song and smiling.
I love you… You love me.. We’re a happy family. With a great big hug and a kiss kiss… Won’t you say you love me too,” Skye sang.
Not only did Jimenez relay her love for Skye in the video, but the post’s caption also mirrored her love for her daughter.
On Aug. 30, 2023, over one year after Skye’s passing, Jimenez shared another video that showed Skye six days before her demise. In the video, the then-2-year-old who was experiencing tremors motioned to hug her mom after drinking a bottle of water.
“No matter what she felt, she always wanted to show me how much she loved me 🤍,” Jimenez wrote in the video.
What do you think about Ava Skye singing her favorite song to her mom in her last moments? What do you think of Magalli Jimenez documenting her daughter’s illness and caring for her through it all? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends and family members.