By: Kevin DuBois, SMS Dad and Children’s Book Author

Do you have a “comfort tree”?  A person you lean on who is always there to help, support, and believe in you no matter what? I don’t think I truly realized how much my daughters depended on each other until life slowed down and I was able to take the time to observe the beauty of their relationship. Without even knowing of her little sister’s SMS diagnosis, our thoughtful, wise five-year-old had become that shoulder to lean on…the inspiration behind a Children’s book called “She’s My Sister: The Comfort Tree”. 

Here’s our story and how the inspiring love between my daughters changed my perspective forever… In 2017, we were blessed with a beautiful baby girl who completed our family of four. From the second her older sister laid eyes on her, we knew that the two would be best pals and our dream of having two little girls who would grow up to be life-long friends began to blossom.   Like many of you reading this can probably relate, a few weeks after we brought our little girl home, we began to struggle with feeding, reflux and gastro issues. Then came the chronic ear infections and as the months began to pass, the missed developmental milestones. We started down the all-consuming path of doctors’ visits and specialist appointments which ultimately led to our daughter’s Smith-Magenis Syndrome diagnosis shortly before her second birthday. I remember being very overwhelmed those next several months as we continued to process the whirlwind of emotions of our new reality.  Then you pepper in the constant roadblocks of our day-to-day and some days just felt all-consuming. From realizing that our trusted day care really wasn’t the right fit, to then being asked to leave our new preschool just 8 months later, my wife and I decided our next move was for her to take a step back from her career to stay home with our recently-turned 3-year-old… and then COVID struck. The day my wife turned her computer in, we started hearing government officials talking about “shelter-in-place”, international travel was being canceled, and stay-at-home orders were issued as the world started to shut down. I left work on that Friday, not realizing I wouldn’t step foot back into the office for almost two years and our kindergartener had no idea she was about to go through the next 14 months in a virtual classroom.  What was happening?  Just like many families, we were trying to navigate life during this very uncertain time. Looking back at this now, this moment in time was a blessing for our family. We were forced to slow down, take a breath, and uncover what was right in front of our eyes.  OUR beautiful family. While working from home and spending so much time together, I became more observant of my oldest daughter’s interactions with her younger sister.  She was patient while they played, helped translate non-verbal communications into words, endured the behavioral outbursts, and unknowingly figured out the “art of distraction” to help her sister through frustrations and tantrums.  It was simply amazing. Not for one moment did she ever ask, question, or waiver on being what she knew her sister needed: a “comfort tree”. While taking this all in, I started putting pen to paper on a story that was unfolding before my eyes.  It was a combination of reality, but also a magical view of how I thought my oldest daughter would dream of how to be there for her sister.  This led me to create a children’s picture book series, “S he’s My Sister”, and the first book titled, “The Comfort Tree“. The series focuses on sibling relationships and the magical adventures they go on, but also weaves in different aspects of SMS. I hope the books provide a little insight into that world, encourage wild imaginations, remind us to see beyond any child’s diagnosis, and accept everyone for who they are.

As a thank you to this amazing SMS community, during the month of April the DuBois family is excited to donate a 20% of every book sold at http://www.kpdbooks.com/purchase back to PRISMS.