MIAMI, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Infant mortality is a topic no one likes to talk about. So how do you discuss it with your child? See how a young boy helped cope with the loss of his baby sister through story-telling. And how it’s now helping other children going through sibling loss.
“I have a daughter, Taylor, who was born and passed away at ten days old.” Talking about the loss of her infant daughter is still painful for Kathy Ross-Scully.
Kathy continued, “The hardest loss is the loss of a child. So you tend to focus inwardly as a parent. But you can’t when you have another child.”
Kathy also has a son Aidan, who was only six when his baby sister died.
She explained, “I noticed moments where emotionally he would just break down or get angry.”
Kathy tried every way she could think of to explain the loss of her baby to Aidan. And then, the butterfly arrived.
Aidan Scully said, “We saw a butterfly and my mom said that’s Taylor and that made me feel better.”
That moment sparked an idea!
“Aidan turned to me and said I want to write a book to help children.” Kathy told Ivanhoe.
Kathy started typing the words Aidan said out loud and that turned into a book called My Sister is a Butterfly.
Aidan talked about his process: “That made me feel really happy because it showed that she was there with me.”
The story moved famous artist David Lebatard who offered to illustrate the book for free.
“He brought Aidan’s words to life.” Kathy said.
Now Aidan does book readings at schools to share his butterfly stories with other children.
“I thought it would help other kids to get through losses in their families.” Aidan shared.
Shining a healing light on a painful topic.
Aidan hopes his book will soon be available in neonatal units across the country. My Sister is a Butterfly has sold several hundred copies through Aidan’s website and a portion of the proceeds are donated to charity. His mom says it’s important to give your child a creative outlet to express their feelings. For more information on Aidan and his book please visit www.aidanssmiles.com
Contributors to this news report include: Janna Ross, Producer; Judy Reich, Videographer; Roque Correa, Editor.
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