Saturday, September 25, 2010

What Constitutes Courage?

UPDATE: As of February 19, 2011, she has lost a total of 144 pounds, which officially puts her at a Body Mass Index (BMI) that qualifies her to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While this is one of her goals, she is still working on the ultimate goal in order to live a long healthy life. WE ARE EXTREMELY PROUD OF HER!


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AFTER



Courage is a lot of things. We talk about soldiers being courageous. We talk about cancer survivors being courageous. We've all seen videos of courageous people who have fought against the odds to do great things with their lives, and we applaud their courage. Courage comes in many forms, and means many things to many people.

Today I'd like to tell you about someone very close to me who is very courageous--my youngest child. I received her permission to tell you her story. My daughter weighed 10 pounds when she was born, and life has not been easy. She has always been overweight. It was years before someone could put a name to it, but they finally discovered she has polycystic ovarian syndrome. It is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to raise an overweight child keeping self-esteem in tact. Our first priority was to make sure that she became a person who knew who she was on the inside. We walked a tightrope continually, trying to keep her weight down while letting her know that we loved her both inside and out.

She's a 20-year-old adult now. The last 15 months, she has worked very hard to lose the weight that she's been gaining her entire life. In the last 15 months, she has lost 122.2 pounds, and is still dropping. That's courage! That's intestinal fortitude!

She has learned what she must do to become healthy and stay healthy. She's learned how to adjust her eating habits, her exercise program, and her life habits to keep her strong. She has learned skills that will assure her a happy life. That's courage!

We're very proud of her! We've always been proud of her! She is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. When I grow up, I want to be just like my youngest daughter.

9 comments:

  1. I am very proud of all the White's and am sincerely happy for Kaylonnie. We each have our struggles in this life and it just proves that when we are consistent with any goal, good things happen. Please don't grow up , Laurie, we are the way we are for a reason..I don't plan on EVER growing up!!

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    1. Meu nome é michelly...Moro no Brasil em Brasilia...Tive a honra de conhecer Kaylonnie...Minha doce amiga sister...Ensinou meus filhos...
      Me ensinou a orar e a voltar para casa do meu celestial...
      o que posso dizer dessa moça doce,linda,espiritual que ela é missionaria valorosa e fiel...Tenho a oportunidade de ve-la diariamente e quanto mais eu a conheço mais eu a amo...
      Minha familia a ama...gostaria de deixar registrado o amor e a gratidao que tenho por essa sister linda por dentro e por fora...
      com amor
      michelly guilherme e juninho

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    2. You are so sweet to leave this message. Thank you! We miss Kaylonnie, but we know that she is in the place Heavenly Father wants her to be. She is doing the Lord's work. She has told us about you and your family, and she loves you all! Thanks again for leaving such a beautiful message!
      Laurie White, Kaylonnie's Mom

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    3. For the benefit of others who might read this comment, this is Google's translation of Shelly's message:

      "My name is michelly ... I live in Brazil in Brasilia ... I had the honor of meeting Kaylonnie sweet friend ... My sister taught my children ... ...
      Taught me to pray and go home to my heavenly ...
      I can say this girl sweet, beautiful, spiritual, she is brave and faithful missionary ... I have the opportunity to see her every day and the more I know the more I love ...
      My family loves to go on record ... I would love and gratitude I have for this beautiful sister inside and out ...
      with love
      michelly guilherme and juninho

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  2. Wow! Congratulations! She has amazing courage and is a beautiful woman inside and out. Plus, with you as her mother, well - she's unstoppable! (PCOS is tough. I developed this after my two were born, it's been no fun)

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  3. YEAH! She hit another milestone. She is a great person, inside and out. You have done an outstanding job raising a well rounded person. But, you did this with all your kids. Kaylonnie and you are fabulous. Love ya both!

    D.

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  4. That is great. Good for here for all the hard work involved.

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  5. She has set a great example for all of us!

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