If Life Gives You NF, Make Lemonade

You all have heard to quote, “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” My five year old son Luke took this quote, which I don’t believe he has even herd before, to a whole different level. If you have read my posts in the past you know that Luke and I suffer from a disorder called Neurofibromatosis or “NF” for short. NF can cause tumors to grow uncontrollably along your nerves, which can cause a variety of complications. These can range from learning disorders, scoliosis, blindness, deafness, bone and tissue disfigurement and different types of cancer, and that is just the tip of the ice berg. The past few years our family has tried to become more involved with the foundation to try and raise awareness and money for NF. My husband ran the Houston Marathon and I have worked on a committee for a fundraiser; both benefiting NF. We must have instilled this into our two boys because when it came time to run their first lemonade stand, without a blink of an eye Luke wanted his money to be sent to NF.

I am happy to report that their little lemonade stand was very successful. Making $53 dollars, which is more than any lemonade stand I ever had. Yesterday we went to the bank and got the cashier’s check made and then got some pictures printed as well. He is sending off the money today. It never crossed his mind to keep it. When I asked him how much he wanted to donate, he said, “All of it, they need it more than I do!” My heart skipped a beat, and yes, I wiped a tear from my eye, wouldn’t you? His generous efforts did not go unnoticed and I did buy him a special prize for all the hard work.

He taught so many people about NF, and his knowledge was very accurate. Luke was able to answer many questions, I was quite impressed. He was able to tell his costumers how NF has affected him and his mommy, and he handed out brochures to people who wanted to learn more. I think he would be a great spokesperson for the disorder, if I do say so myself. In fact he is having another stand this weekend at my parent’s garage sale. Maybe this little boy will start a trend or campaign to raise money for NF, wouldn’t that be wonderful? What a great accomplishment it would be for a five year old, and to think he thought it all up on his own; with no help from mom and dad. It would be something if one day you were driving down the road and you saw a billboard that read,

“If Life Gives You NF, Make Lemonade!”

You would be able to think back and remember reading about the little boy who had a dream, and worked to make that dream a reality by helping fight for a cure for a disorder called NF.

 



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
To learn more visit the Texas Neurofibromatosis Foundation at http://www.texasnf.org/ or my blog page about NF at http://www.mudpiesformommy.com/p/nf.html