Malachi is funny, smart, and kind. He’s very active and likes to climb on everything. He has a great sense of humor. He loves legos and can spend hours every day creating new masterpieces. He also loves reptiles, rocks, and precious gems. He loves treasure boxes, and anything small and “special”.
Malachi was diagnosed with ALL on December 9th of 2019. He kept getting sick. He had contracted strep throat, ear infections, and Bell’s palsy within a year. One week when I thought he had the flu, I became suspicious because his symptoms were atypical. He wasn’t eating but was bloated. He only threw up in the mornings, and then acted normal. I took him to his regular doctor to get more tests done, and that day, we were rushed to the emergency room at our local Children’s Hospital where he was diagnosed with Leukemia.
Malachi has been through intensive chemotherapy treatment as well as cranial radiation. He has low immunity and so he can’t be around people, a lot of the time. He can’t play in the dirt, wear flip flops, or engage in activities where he can get hurt. This was a huge adjustment from our active, wild 6-year-old boy, to where we are now.
Cancer has isolated our family. The other side is that we have had a lot of family time, and have made some really special memories. We are a lot more cautious than we used to be. We’ve had to change many goals and dreams for the future, as well as current changes. We had to change schools, so we could better navigate through his treatment. We had dreams to foster other children, which won’t be possible through the next three years of treatment. We are still trying to create a new normal and make new dreams.
Hope session by Rachael Venema Photography | Facebook | Instagram