Every moment with ‘Baby Zion’ was a gift, mom says
Zion Blick touched the hearts of millions before he died last month at 10 days old.
Diagnosed with Trisomy 18, he had been deemed unfit to live — but his parents decided to keep him with them for as long as possible.
Devout Christians, Josh and Robbyn Blick shared Zion’s story with the world through social media, posting pictures of their son to Instagram and encouraging people to tweet messages of hope and encouragement with the hashtag #IHeartZion.
In a recent essay for Today.com, Robynn Blick explained why she didn’t terminate the pregnancy at 20 weeks when the Blicks learned of Zion’s illness, and why they decided to share his life with others.
“Every life, no matter how small, is important and has a purpose,” she wrote. “Knowing this truth and also the diagnosis of our son, we chose to celebrate his life, no matter how the odds were stacked against him.”
She said the couple struggled with the decision to tell their other children about Zion’s health problems, wishing to shield them from knowing death so young.
“Then, as we prayed together as a family, I saw my boys learn that life has purpose and meaning beyond our understanding,” she wrote.
Documenting as much of Zion’s life as possible with photos and videos was an obvious choice, because it was uncertain how much time the Blicks would have with him. But the decision to share the photos with the world — to share their joy and pain as they were experiencing it — was made because of their faith.
“If even only one life is changed, one person learns of the love of God, then his life brought glory to God,” she wrote.
Contact Stephanie Grimes at sgrimes@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @steph_grimes
