Edith Lemay and Sébastien Pelletier, who are the parents of 13-year-old girl Mia and three boys—Léo, 11, Colin, 9, and Laurent, 7—set out on a trip around the world to see all of its beauty while their kids still can. More info: National Geographic
When 3 of their 4 kids were diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder causing vision loss, the family set out on a trip around the world to experience all its beauty while their kids still can
Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic The last 6 years were truly devastating for the family from Québec, since their daughter Mia and the two youngest boys were diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a rare genetic disease in which the cells of the retina slowly die. “The hardest part with the diagnosis was inaction. There’s nothing they can do about it. There’s no treatment,” Edith shared. The parents couldn’t do anything about the progress of the disease, but they realized that at least they could give their kids some unforgettable experiences that would stay in their memories for a lifetime. “We don’t know how fast it’s going to go, but we expect them to be completely blind by mid-life,” the parents said and added that Mia’s impairment advisor suggested they fill her visual memory with pictures from books. “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,” Edith said. “And I’m going to fill her visual memory with the best, most beautiful images I can,” she added.
The family’s 3 kids were diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a rare and incurable disease that leads to severe visual impairment
Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic This understanding led the family to an inspiring year-long journey across 24 countries. The parents asked their kids to create a bucket list of things they wanted to see and do, which included watching a desert sunset, drinking juice while riding a camel, riding horseback in Mongolia, making friends in other countries, sleeping on a train and many others. “We were focusing on sights,” Sébastien explained. “We were also focusing a lot on fauna and flora. We’ve seen incredible animals in Africa but also elsewhere. So we were really trying to make them see things that they wouldn’t have seen at home and have the most incredible experiences,” he added. Therefore, during the journey, Léo got to see elephants on safari, Mia swam with dolphins, Edith rode a hot-air balloon in Cappadocia while Sébastien saw the historic site of Angkor Wat and Colin realized his dream of sleeping on a moving train. The entire family made friends with local people and experienced magically beautiful wildlife.
Edith Lemay and Sébastien Pelletier set themselves a goal to fill the memories of their kids with breathtaking destinations and once-in-a-lifetime encounters
Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic The film Blink will be released by Walt Disney Studios in 150 theaters in the U.S. and Canada beginning October 4. “It’s a testament to familial strength and resilience in the face of adversity,” shared Edmund Stenson, who directed the film. “Yes, the diagnosis is visual impairment-specific, but it’s really a more broad story about what do you do when the world throws you something? How do you respond? How do you react?” National Geographic’s cameras followed the family for 76 days as they traveled Namibia, Mongolia, Egypt, Laos, Nepal and Turkey and managed to capture this in the most intimate way. “Keeping our camera at kid-height and intimately close to the family, we aimed to immerse the audience in the observational realities of their daily life, as well as the subtle relationships between each of them. This is a film built on looks, gestures and tiny details – the very fabric of our relationships with one another,” the directors Edmund Stenson and Daniel Roher explained. “By balancing (the parents’ grief) with a more innocent and joyous tale of childlike wonder and discovery, we felt we could go beyond a mere catalog of locations and capture something universal,” they added.
The way the family faced this life-altering news showed that the uncertain future does not define the present
Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic Share icon Image credits: National Geographic “Don’t lose sight of what matters,” says the main message of Blink, and I suddenly remember one of my favorite quotes from Roald Dahl, which perfectly describes the attitude of this wonderful family: “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” Edith Lemay and Sébastien Pelletier show the entire world that even in those situations where we cannot control anything, there’s still a way to see the light, to cherish life and embrace every single second of it as if it’s the most special and the most magical one.
People all over the internet sent supportive and heartfelt messages to the entire family
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