HE SITS snugly on his mom’s lap, eyes glued to the coffee cup in front of her. With a loving smile Michanka van Zyl scoops some milk froth with a teaspoon and feeds it to her son who eagerly slurps it up.
Even though he’s a year old, Elijah can’t lift a spoon to his mouth by himself. In fact, his mother explains, he can’t move anything towards his mouth so she’s taught him to lean forward and eat his food straight from the bowl.
It’s the only option for the little boy, who isn’t able to do things other kids his age take for granted.
But while Elijah’s body limits him in so many ways, there’s clearly nothing wrong with his mind. His curious eyes dart this way and that way, taking in everything happening around him. And his hands are always trying to grab whatever’s within his reach – from a pencil to his mom’s cellphone.
Yet Elijah can’t bend his limbs and his feet point inward, which means he can’t crawl, walk or explore the world like other tots.
“It’s very frustrating for him,” Michanka (34) says. “It breaks my heart to see how much he wants to stand up and walk, but he simply can’t.”
Elijah was born with arthrogryposis, a rare condition that results in stiff joints and prevents his arms from bending at the elbows and legs from bending at the knees. The little boy’s fingers are also so rigid he can pick up objects only by pinching them between his thumbs.
There’s no cure for arthrogryposis, but what makes life even harder for Elijah and his family is that there are no medical experts in SA who understand the condition, which is thought to affect one in every 3 000 newborns worldwide.
Esta historia es de la edición 25 April 2024 de YOU South Africa.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición 25 April 2024 de YOU South Africa.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
BALLON IN THE BAG
Manchester City midfielder Rodrigo Hernandez Cascante says his Ballon d'Or win is a victory for Spanish football
IT WAS ALL A LIE
A new doccie exposes the Grey's Anatomy writer who fabricated her life story
'I WILL NEVER GIVE UP'
After her husband, anticorruption activist Alexei Navalny, was poisoned and murdered by the Kremlin, she became the public face of Russia's opposition. In this candid interview Yulia Navalnaya opens up about life on the run, her perilous family life and why she's continuing her husband's fight to save their country
AGREE TO DISAGREE
Trevor Noah on how his childhood squabbles with his mother inspired his delightful new book
PAUSE THE CLOCK
Researchers have discovered that the ageing process spikes at 44 and 60. Here's what you can do to slow it down
MPOOMY ON TOP
We chat to SA's most popular female podcaster about love, loss and her booming success
MY BROTHER IS NOT TO BLAME
Tinus Drotské says his sibling, ex Bok Nǎka, is the victim in the brawl with a neighbour that landed up in court
MATT THE RECLUSE
A year after his friend's tragic death, the actor continues to shun the spotlight
A LEAP OF FAITH
After her husband tried to kill her by tampering with her parachute she thought she'd never trust a man again-but now she's found love
THEY'RE MY KIDS!
This West Coast woman treats her monkeys as iftheyre humans and animal activists are not happy about it