Parenting a teen can be tricky. Parenting a teen with a painful rheumatic disease like Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis can be heartbreaking. But it can also be incredibly inspiring, as you’ll learn from Roam’s mom, Jana. She was reminded of her son’s strength and resilience during our Team Cassie + Friends Run/Walk in Calgary.

Before Roam’s diagnosis, he was an incredible soccer player, and there was already talk of scholarships and recruitment around him at age 11. He lives to move.His dream was to play in the Premier League.

Then came JA.

What was originally thought to be a pulled muscle or injury turned into a fruitless year of physio with no improvement in pain or function. The search for answers eventually led to the Alberta Children’s Hospital and a diagnosis of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis.

Even with this diagnosis, Roam remains in pain daily, and is often hesitant to play the sports he loves. When we signed up for the run, he was adamant we would walk the whole 5K. But I know my son, and I know that JA might limit his movement, but his competitive drive remains firmly intact.

He walked for about 3 minutes before saying, “No, I can’t walk 5K.”

My heart dropped, and I thought that he meant that walking was too painful that morning. Instead he turned to me, gave me that smile I see so much less of since his diagnosis, and said,

“Let’s go mom. We are running this race!”

I spent the next 4.8K chasing my son, who ran like it was effortless, and looked so free from all of the injections and uncertainty, all the sleepless nights, all the change.

When we neared the finish line he slowed down and I caught up, he held out his hand and said, “We need to finish together”.

Then my son, who at 15 is growing into an independent person and needing his mom less and less, grabbed my hand and we crossed the finish line as one.

Thank you for the magic of yesterday.

He felt strong and brave and fierce and free.