An elderly woman named Rhea longed to reconnect with her son, so she decided to fly in business class, hoping to get closer to him. On the day of her flight, she felt nervous as she boarded the plane and took a seat among wealthy passengers. Wearing her best but worn clothes, she stood out, attracting disapproving looks from those around her.
Once seated, a man beside her noticed her and reacted with disgust. He called a flight attendant, complaining about her presence. Other passengers joined in, expressing their desire for Rhea to leave, claiming she didn’t belong in business class. Despite their harsh words, Rhea remained calm and told herself that things would get better, even as tears streamed down her face.
Feeling humiliated, Rhea decided to leave and began gathering her belongings. As she stood up, she stumbled and fell to her knees, scattering the contents of her purse. Instead of helping her, the man beside her stepped back, but an elegant older woman came to her aid, kneeling beside her.
The atmosphere shifted as the woman picked up a photo of a young boy from Rhea’s bag. Rhea shared that the boy was her son, whom she had to give up for adoption when he was five due to financial struggles. She had been searching for him for years and had finally learned he was now a pilot. To be closer to him, she saved money for this flight, which she saw as a birthday gift for herself.
As Rhea spoke, the passengers listened, and many were moved to tears. The mood in the cabin changed, and those who had mocked her began to feel ashamed. After sharing her story, Rhea gathered the courage to meet her son, who was piloting the plane.
When he announced over the intercom that his mother was on board for her birthday, the passengers applauded, and those who had previously criticized Rhea apologized. Finally, after years apart, Rhea was reunited with her son, Joseph, embracing him tightly.
This story teaches us the importance of kindness and perseverance. It shows that standing up for others can change lives and that never giving up on what matters most can lead to beautiful reunions. Share this story to inspire others and brighten their day.
Mom of rare twins with Down syndrome shuts down critics with photo showing how beautiful they are
While the chances of giving birth to twins increased 72 percent between 1980 and 2018, it’s still pretty rare. About 33 out of every 1,000 births are twins.
And what are the chances of identical twins? Approximately every three or four births out of every 1,000 are identical twins. So again, relatively rare.
When 23-year-old Savannah Combs found out she was pregnant with twins, she was thrilled. And then she learned another rarity, they both had Down syndrome.
Of course, it was emotional news. Savannah and her husband, Justin Ackerman, knew that some people would judge her and her babies because of their condition.
But to Savannah, that’s what makes them incredibly precious.
“It’s very rare what they have, but they’ve been my little gems,” she told News4JAX.
Savannah, who is from Middleburg, Florida, shared her post-pregnancy journey with her daughters Kennadi Rue and Mckenli Ackerman, on TikTok where they quickly gained a following.
In one of her videos, Savannah said she was told to abort her babies because they would not make it.
She decided to keep them and give them a fighting chance.
”Every [prenatal] appointment they were alive was a blessing to me,” Savannah explained.
When she learned they both had Down syndrome, her husband was away at boot camp.
Savannah was 29 weeks pregnant when she was admitted to the hospital, and delivered her daughters. The identical twin girls, Kennadi Rue and Mckenli Ackerman, were born on May 12, 2021.
The twins arrived two months before their due date, so they had to spend several weeks in the NICU before they came home.
They’re called mono di twins, meaning that they had their own sacs, but they shared the same placenta, meaning that they were going to be identical,” she said.
“Mo di twins as it is, it’s like very rare. And then you throw Down syndrome on top of it, it’s like one in 2 million.”
Despite their rare condition, Savannah said they are just like any other child.
“They have feelings. They have a beating heart. They know how to talk. They know how to do things you do. They will get there,” she said.
“Like I said, it may be a step behind but they’re going to do it. I’ve learned these kids are feisty little things and happy little things.”
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