After approval, once she arrived at the shop, she walked in, got in line, and looked at the menu while deciding on what she would like to order. As a couple of people ahead of her made their orders, she saw that they sold a delicious bowl of mint & chip ice-cream—her favorite. She decided ordering a dish of her favorite ice-cream would be perfect for enjoyment while cooling down a little bit from the hot and sticky Georgia summer air.
The climate in Georgia had warmer temperatures and humidity than she had been used to in Kearney, Nebraska. Taking a chance on the social aspect of the location near her aunt’s house and ordering ice cream knowing it would be quite the tasty delight seemed like an excellent way to get two things done at one time. Why not take in this unfamiliar and intriguing ambiance with something savory?
When she arrived at the front counter to make her order the person who attended to her requests was a green-eyed, red-haired, striking and clean-cut young man. She looked at his nametag quickly, almost as if with the blink of an eye. She was going to be here for a while, so maybe she would have a chance to meet him again soon.
Daniel, who had worked there with repeat clientele for the last three summers, noticed her new persona as he served this gorgeous young lady her ice cream. Something about her demeanor intrigued his young mind, no matter what prudence might have dictated, so he asked his boss for a quick break. There were no incoming customers following her and everyone else seemed settled-in and pleased, so he thought, naturally this would be an ideal time for a break from the routine.
He didn’t mention why, but his boss, who saw his priceless expression when she approached the counter to make her order, had known him for years, appreciated his work ethic, had a kind heart and agreed to let him use a “break” to talk with her. His boss knew that he could serve ice-cream to any customers in Daniel’s place if they came in.
Daniel took off his apron, hung it up on the nail just outside the large room-sized freezer, and walked casually to her table. “Excuse me, Ma’am,” Daniel said. “I don’t believe we’ve introduced ourselves right and proper.”
She looked up from her dish of mint & chip ice-cream, not expecting a visitor to come to her table. It was Daniel and she could tell from his beautiful green eyes. She felt herself kind of blush for the first time in her life. With a quick brush of her napkin to hide and wipe away the ice cream that had fallen upon her chin, she smiled.
“My name’s Beverly or Bev,” said Beverly. She remembered his name because she had looked at his name tag when she made her order and knew it was him on account of his handsome and attractive features and personality, “nice to meet you, Daniel.”
“Thank you, Bev; you can call me Dan,” he replied, trying to be polite. He had thoughts racing through his mind as to how to continue this conversation. Looking at her made his heart skip a beat, her blue eyes, blonde hair, ponytail, and her young yet very feminine and attractive build and demeanor were breath-taking in his pubescent and curious mind, but he wasn’t about to let that overcome his ability to make a decent and thoughtful exchange, he seemed to appreciate her at a deeper level as well. “I’m from around here, and I don’t believe I’ve seen you in this area before. You seem like a pleasant person. What brings you to Atlanta?”
“I came here to visit my aunt, Tina, for the summer. So, I’ll be here for a while. It’s nice to meet you, Dan. You must be on break, please, take a seat?” said Beverly, as politely and professionally as she could.
Beverly, as young as she was, was quite mature for her age, and despite that fact, she thought he was quite charming. Through their conversations, she discovered that he was 14, only two years his senior. She also found that his level of ambition, his politeness, and kindness demonstrated right away to be impressive to her; so, she stayed there in the ice-cream parlor as he came by to visit from time to time until his shift was over.
While waiting, he brought out water, a soda, and showed her to the women’s restroom, and then he occupied himself elsewhere and in a gentlemanly fashion, so she could freshen up.
When Daniel’s workday was finally over, and when he saw her sitting there, even his intuition was brilliant enough to know she had stayed there for him. With that knowledge, they talked some more, enjoyed their exchanges and then asked her if it was okay if he escorted her to her Aunt Tina’s house. With both of their spirits in the clouds, they walked down the road and made the turn toward her aunt’s home as Beverly talked to Daniel and described the sights, sounds, and the weather in Kearney, Nebraska.
When they arrived at her aunt’s house, Daniel tapped on the door and Beverly’s aunt answered with a smile, “Come in you two. I had a hunch you might meet each other. When I looked at the clock, I was for sure you had. How was your day?”
“Oh, it was wonderful, Ma’am. You know my schedule pretty well. I must say that it is so nice to see you again. I met your niece, Beverly, today and she told me a lot of neat things about Nebraska. I’ll have to visit there someday,” Daniel replied.
Beverly’s aunt chuckled in a friendly manner, suggesting she’d been to Nebraska, but somehow, she preferred the weather there, especially considering her arthritis, and let them both in. She shared her sofa with them, brought out some hot tea, and together they talked, laughed, and enjoyed their time. Once Daniel realized it was getting late he politely dismissed himself.
“Oh, Daniel, he’s a good boy,” Tina told Beverly, as he disappeared down the road and out of sight, after looking back and waving a couple of times.
Needless to say, Beverly and Daniel visited and talked with each other each and every day that summer until it was time to escort her back to the airport to return home.
As the summer break went by, however, they enjoyed Daniel’s free moments from work, walked the parks, talked about life, and their hopes and dreams for the future. When her summer break came to a close, Daniel invited Beverly to go with him on a special date. “This won’t be anything overly fancy, just something fun.” He coached her. With her aunt’s permission, he took her to the county fairgrounds and together they enjoyed every last ride. They also shared some chili dogs, funnel cakes, drank fountain sodas, and laughed about how the summer sped by too soon.
Before returning to her home in Nebraska, the two had become good friends, fond of the moments shared, and happy they’d met. As such, they exchanged mailing addresses. She made him promise to meet her one day at her hometown in Kearney. They hugged each other; she hugged her aunt and kissed her cheek, boarded the plane, and she immediately began missing them both. The summer had been wonderful, and she had them to thank for it.
After writing to each other each week for nearly fifteen years, Bev and Dan finally saw each other again. Every week, as the years had passed by and before they had finally met again, their faithfully written and weekly mailed letters helped to keep them on track with their growth goals. Going to the mailbox each week helped them grow the bonds of trust, especially when, just as hoped, there was another beautiful letter, just as they had agreed. Seeing those letters gave them each a spring in their step. Each week, inside the mailbox, was another three to four-page letter discussing how life was going, from their goals to their hopes, dreams, and frustrations, to everything else that came to their minds. Their hearts floated when they thought of each other, and they used that positive vibe to stay highly focused on getting good grades in their academics and in doing well in their extracurricular activities, from band to sports and art.
After fifteen years of writing, they had both coached each other from a distance to completion of college, and as luck would have it, Daniel had found a job in the animal husbandry industry and had secured employment in Beverly’s hometown of Kearney, Nebraska. She too had secured employment in her town as a psychologist for the local high school she had attended growing up.
Since they had been star-struck for so many years, their long-awaited reunion, following several months of dating, courting, and introducing Daniel to those who she grew up with, tu
rned into a joyous small-town wedding. He’d matured quite handsomely, to her. To him, she became even more beautiful than he would have ever dreamed. Her parents, her aunt, his parents, and even his boss from the ice-cream parlor had traveled up from Georgia to be there.
Five years passed by after their marriage, before Erin, their miracle baby, finally entered their lives. They did a lot to prepare for her, but she didn’t arrive until they had suffered from two unfortunate miscarriages. Both of these occasions had caused them to grow more resilient together, and despite the year's occurrence accompanied by broken hopes, dreams, and hearts, they were strong and very much in love. Their love persisted through all, no matter the challenge.
Erin’s parents and all who knew her would say throughout each of those first six years that they saw in her the example of a beautiful girl, who despite all odds, was positive, full of hope, unlimited amounts of grace, and she inspired the hearts of those around her with her unique genius and love toward others. Rarely did anyone notice she was stricken with premature aging with an all too limited lifespan of eleven to thirteen years? Erin quickly made them forget within the first moment of her being in the room on any occasion that she had a unique beauty about her despite the result of a disease that affected her cells. Her cells were prematurely senescent. As she went through the various stages that came with Progeria, there were seldom and few times when she would ask her parents why she was so different, but if she did her parents would waste no time in assuring her that of all things the most important aspect to anyone was their character.
“Think back on all of the people you have appreciated most,” her Father, Daniel, would caringly tell her. “Do you remember these people more for what they looked like or for how they treated you?”
Her mother, Beverly, looked back, and when her husband would ask that question, she was always proud. She was proud of her husband and Erin. Erin always knew the right answer and strived to be that person. She wanted to be the person who brought joy to those around her and she had expressed on numerous occasions how she was grateful for parents who possessed a loving and gracious nature, and for the friends who had always been kind to her.
Later on, in 2010, after Erin started the first grade, she excelled far and above her peers in every way, both academically and artistically. Beverly and Daniel continued to take care of her, showing concern for her condition, giving her the proper treatments to slow down the effects of progeria in her body, and as she excelled in school and kept a positive mindset on her life and the Universe around her, they were impressed with her demeanor and growing personality.
Beverly enjoyed reminiscing about her daughter. She admired the fact that even though Erin didn’t have the energy for physical routines, she had studied hard academically and as a result had won her school’s annual Spelling Bee. From there she persevered further to win the next levels of the early-term Spelling Bee contest, all the way through to Nationals. By mid-October of 2010, she had been invited to share her story and how she faced and dealt with her unique battles in life, on the talk shows of every network and cable channel in the nation.
Beverly worked with Erin and Daniel to provide details to an expert on documentaries, one who actually appreciated the educational value of informing others of what was happening while searching for a solution to the issues. He pooled the necessary information and put together a narrated documentary about Erin. Erin’s story was typically shared in a broadcast along with some re-enactment on each show, followed by an interview:
“Born on the 24th of March of 2004, she was ten-months old that following December when her mother and father noticed that she was still wearing the same clothes a three-month-old baby would wear. There were symptoms demonstrated that brought a concern to Beverly and Daniel, so they brought Erin in to see the family pediatrician.
“‘What your daughter has is known as Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, otherwise known as Progeria. And what that means is that she has and will suffer from premature aging, which will affect her bone density, her skin elasticity, and she will age eight times faster than the average human being. In most cases, children that are diagnosed with progeria do not live past the age of thirteen.’
“Beverly and Daniel Carter were immediately shocked when news of this hit their ears. Notwithstanding the news, they loved their darling little green-eyed, blonde-haired, heart-shape-faced girl so much. She was their only child after two miscarriages, and they wanted in every way possible to provide her with the best life they could.
“Before she had been born, on multiple occasions her parents had gone to parenting classes, parenting workshops, and had even gone so far as to prepare for the personal development of any possibilities of any interests shown. They wanted to afford their child an enriching environment that lent to mental, social, and personal creative development based on interests their daughter might have and would inevitably show as she grew older.
“They provided a myriad of toys, games, and activity options for their child so that she could choose between them, from sports to mechanics, to the arts, to the sciences, and perhaps even a healthy balance of them all, to express her unique interests.
“Her parents wanted to do the right thing by Erin, but the news that she had somehow inherited a premature aging disease, wherein she could die early on in life, weighed heavily upon their shoulders and in their hearts. They had done everything they could to provide their daughter with the best and most structured lifestyle possible. They had provided her with the tools for success early on in life and had done everything they could to ensure she could live with a long and intellectual reality, and to attain whatever dreams she might have. As a result, Erin had done so much to provide hope to others and those who knew her wished that perhaps a healthy life was within her grasp.
“‘Originally, upon discovery of her tragic misfortune, Daniel, her father, a strong yet caring man, sat in the pediatrician’s office, had closed his eyes, and sunk in his chair,’ Beverly Carter recalled, ‘as though every effort they had made would do their little girl no good. Her life would be cut short all too soon.’ The doctor then sat up, with an anticipation of hope, ‘But, if we can find a cure, perhaps there will be possibilities with regard to the subject of aging, altogether. Such a difficult disease to cure comes with a lot of promise for all of humanity if a remedy is found.’
“Daniel expressed how, upon finding out about Erin’s condition, he had felt the sensation of tears uncontrollably welling up in his eyes; his throat had tightened from the emotional shock. ‘Beverly had always been keen and quick to notice my concerns, and the doctor’s words gave me some hope. Yet, that wasn’t enough. I wanted something that could help my daughter, and now.’
“Beverly articulated, ‘His expressions gave him away every time. I also knew that despite all, something had to be done. Our daughter would not be deprived of the life she deserved if we could help it, and we were willing to talk to every doctor and every therapist until they could find a way to afford Erin a normal life. Nevertheless, we also realized the reality of things as they were perceived to be, and we were not naïve to the fact that we also needed to embrace her with love, empathy, and that we would need to do as much as we could to normalize Erin’s life given her condition, despite the circumstances, and to treat her as we would any other child.
‘“I remember confessing to Dan, ‘Our efforts are not wasted, and I am grateful you are not the typical man—you are mighty, you are full of love, you are kind, you are compassionate, and you allow yourself to feel deeply from within a connection toward others that is special, unique, and sincere, and you have a beautiful love for life. Daniel, we love our daughter, no matter what challenges life may bring. With all of the preparations we have made and the efforts we have put into her future, perhaps we’re more prepared now than we would have been otherwise if we had never prepared for parenting the way we did.
“‘Erin, in her younger years, will still have the mind of a child, who loo
ks out into the World and gazes upon us with hope in her heart for the love we can bring her, she is bright, she is curious, I can tell already. She wants to embrace the colors of the World and she will at some point not understand why she is ‘different’ from the other children. We have to do what we can to let her know we love her, we’ll do everything we can to give her life the sense of normalcy she deserves, and we will even find the medical expertise that will help us to overcome this.’
“The Carters sought out medical advice for their daughter for more than five years after they had discovered her condition from doctors at the local clinic in Kearney, Nebraska, who then pointed them toward the hospitals in Lincoln. After their first journey, the doctors in Lincoln had in-turn pointed them to the doctors at Creighton in Omaha, who had then pointed them to the doctors at UNMC, who then pointed them back to a doctor at Creighton, who finally recommended them to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. ‘This did not all happen in one night, rather this was a four-year process,’ Daniel recalled. Following the initial visit, the doctors at the Mayo Clinic tried a lot of trial procedures throughout an entire year but to no avail. ‘I am grateful for their efforts. There is no doubt there is some hope in the future for an understanding of a cure for this, we just need to keep at our efforts and ensure we work with the doctors on an answer. Funding is a constant battle, research and development do not come cheap, and the efforts on the part of all parties involved are greatly appreciated by my wife, me, and Erin.’
“All through the years Erin’s parents nurtured their child, exposed her to nature, and watched as her body aged quickly. No matter their efforts, no matter their hope, and no matter their willingness to work with professionals, it was not always an easy burden to bear. ‘This isn’t fair. She is so special, she is so sweet, she is so strong, and she is so wonderful. Why? Why would any benevolent power ever let this happen to anyone?’ Daniel would ask Beverly.
Further than Before- Pathway to the Stars Page 43