Any parent with a child who is suffering would do anything to take away their pain or lessen it. Most of the time, the only thing parents can do is comfort and support children while they're under professional care.
One dad does just that in a pretty awesome way.
Robert Selby's 3-year-old son, Chace, was born with a congenital heart defect - Tetralogy of Fallot. This defect is made up of four problems, according to the American Heart Association. It's "a hole between the lower chambers of the heart, an obstruction from the heart to lungs, the aorta lies over the hole in the lower chambers [and] the muscle surrounding the lower right chamber becomes overly thickened."
Tetralogy of Fallot "cause[s] oxygen-poor blood to flow out of the heart and to the rest of the body," states the Mayo Clinic. Little Chace has already had two heart surgeries to work to correct the defects.
Chace also has a feeding tube inserted in his stomach to help him get the nutrition he needs. A Fox News article explained that he is underweight because of his heart condition. Robert, Chace's dad, wants him to be proud of his feeding tube, according to a video featuring the father-son duo.
So, Robert takes pictures with Chace displaying Chace's feeding tube as well as one he glues on his own stomach. He is showing support for his son while also raising awareness.
It's the sweetest thing, and clearly they both enjoy it.
Most importantly, Robert and Chace spend quality time together. At the end of the video, a perfect conversation ensues:
Chace: "Daddy, I love you."
Robert: "You love me?"
"Yeah, I wanna be just like you."
"You wanna be just like me?"
"Yes."
"Let me tell you something."
"Okay Daddy."
"I'm molding you, I'm shaping you, and I'm preparing you to be better than me."
Robert is supporting Chace not only with his health complications, but also with life. He's a loving father trying to raise his child right.
Parents do this every day. We work hard to love our children and support them the best we can. We teach them, correct them as necessary, and pray for them. None of us are perfect parents, but we can do our best. We won't always get it right, but our kids will know we love them. And hopefully, they'll turn out better than us.
