These kids want to see the world - before they go blind
It's such an unfathomable fate that siblings Kathryn (13), Sam (11) and Matthew (8) are struck: because of a genetic defect they do not have much time left until they lose their eyesight forever.
Her mother Beth has been blind since the age of five, but her illness was so rare that she did not even have a name. However, two years ago a test revealed that her three children are also affected - and can only be seen for a few more years.
A shock that hit Beth as hard as her kids. "Realizing that my three wonderful children will need so much help - it's just so unfair!", Said the desperate mother to the Internet portal yahoo.com.
"Sightseeing" for life - a world trip for the last impressions
More than anything else, children want to see as much of the world as possible before they lose their sight. Therefore, they travel around the world with their parents and consciously taste every breathtaking landscape panorama, every colorful, exotic flower and every sunset, aware that only a few of these impressions will be granted to them.
"We are doing now what we can not do in the future, we are giving our children memories."
Beth and her husband David do everything they can to give the children as many experiences as possible. Whether flying through the Grand Canyon by helicopter or experiencing the starry sky with a large telescope: Kathryn, Sam and Matthew have a long list of places and impressions that they absolutely want to experience.
During a visit to New Zealand, the family accompanied a television team. It's hard not to get a big lump in your throat when the siblings glide over a majestic mountain panorama with a cable car and for a moment can be simply carefree, amazed and cheering children.
The glimmer of hope: doctors in the race against time
There is a touch of hope in the siblings: the doctors in a clinic in Sydney are working feverishly to be able to cure the hereditary disease of the children in good time. The search for an antidote will take between five and ten years, according to research director Robyn Jamieson.
Kathryn, Sam and Matthew lose their eyesight at different rates and nobody knows how much time each of the kids will spend. Therefore, it can not be ruled out that a remedy can be developed in time for at least one or two of them.
Of course, the parents of the children hope that a breakthrough is imminent. "Having this hope at all has changed our lives," so Beth. Whether this hope will be fulfilled remains uncertain. Until then, Kathryn, Sam and Matthew continue to watch the world with especially attentive eyes - knowing that every moment is a great gift for them.
