A family Canadian started an emotional crossing around the world after they found out that their children had a rare disease genetics that goes to cause loss or diminution of vision over time.
As a result of this disease, the Canadian couple Edith Lemay and Sébastien Pelletier decided that their children should see as much as possible before losing their sight, so undertook a trip around the world so that their children know the wonders of the world.
Tight She is the first daughter of the marriage (they have four children). At the age of three, they first noticed that he had vision problems, but it was not until a few years later that he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a rare genetic disease that causes loss or diminution of vision over time.
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After the birth of Colinwho is currently seven years old, and Laurent, of five, detected that they also had the same symptoms and in 2019 they were diagnosed with the same disease that has no cure or effective treatment. For its part, Leowho is nine years old, was not diagnosed with this disease.
“There’s nothing you can do, really. We don’t know how fast it will go, but we anticipate that they will stay completely blind in middle age“, explained Lemay who has been married to Pelletier for 12 years.
After the hard time of learning of the diagnosis, they began to help their children to teach them the skills they will need to be independent in life.
But then they had an idea that would change everything: “I thought: ‘I’m not going to show her an elephant in a book, I’m going to take her to see a real elephant. And I’m going to fill her visual memory with the best and most beautiful images that she can.”
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After that idea, they began to devise a trip around the world for a whole year with their four children.
“With the diagnosis, we have an urgency. There are great things to do at home, but there is nothing better than traveling. Not only the landscape, but also the different cultures and people,” Pelletier said.
With the savings they had accumulated plus a large sum of money after the company where Pelletier worked was acquired and, since he had shares, he received a large sum of money, they were able to pay for the trip.
The pandemic complicated the trip
The family’s idea was to start traveling in July 2020, going to Russia and spending time in China. However, the coronavirus pandemic forced to postpone everything.
They were only able to start the journey in March 2022 when they left Montreal, Canada. “We actually left without an itinerary. We had ideas of where we wanted to go, but we planned as we went. Maybe a month in advance,” she pointed out.
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Mia wanted to ride a horse, Laurent wanted to drink juice on a camel, and so they decided what they were going to do on the trip that began in Namibia, where they observed elephants, zebras and giraffes.
They then moved to Zambia Already Tanzania, later to Turkey, where they stayed for a month. The trip continued in Mongolia and Indonesia.
“We focus on the sights. We also focus a lot on the fauna and flora. We saw incredible animals in Africa, but also in Turkey and other places. So we try to make them see things that they would not have seen at home and have incredible experiences” Pelletier explains.
Mia has known about her illness since she was seven years old (she is now twelve). However, Colin and Laurent only recently found out. “My little boy asked me: ‘Mommy, what does it mean to be blind? Am I going to drive a car? He is five years old. But little by little she understands what is happening. It was a normal conversation for him. But for me it was heartbreakingLemay said.
“No matter how hard their lives are going to be, I wanted to show them how lucky they are to have running water at home and to be able to go to school every day with cute colored books. We never know what will impress them. We tell ourselves that [pensarán] that something is wonderful and then they see puppies on the street and it’s the best thing in their life,” adds Lemay.
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The family recounts their trip on their social networks, both on Facebook and Instagram.
The family plans to return to their home in Quebec next March. “This journey has opened our eyes to so many other things, and we really want to enjoy what we have and the people around us. If that can continue when we go back, even in our daily routines, that will be a really nice achievement.” Pelletier.
“They are very good together. Above all, I think helps solidify that bond between them. And I hope that continues in the future, so that they can support each other“, said.
“Let’s hope science finds a solution. We cross our fingers for that. But we know it can happen, so we want to make sure our children are equipped to face these challenges,” he concluded in a hopeful message.
ED
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