The ever popular street photography project, Humans Of New York, isn't actually in New York right now. The photographer behind the page is currently touring through South America and talking to people in countries such as Argentina and Brazil, but the posts are still as poignant and emotional as ever.
Take, for example, this photo of a mother with her daughter, who survived childhood cancer and three heart failures and now lives with multiple disabilities.
“She has autonomy. She has a strong will. But she can’t move," the mother said in the post. "So in many ways her life is my life. It’s bigger than me, it controls me, and it makes me fight like never before. We spend so much time together that she’s a part of me. She knows how important she is to me. She had childhood cancer. Her heart failed three times. And I was by her side the entire time. I never realised that I could love someone as much as this. She could never hurt me. She could never hurt anyone. We always ask her: ‘Are you angry?’, ‘Are you mad?’ And she always says ‘no.’ She laughs when I laugh. And right now I’m trying not to cry. Because she'll cry if I cry.”
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Her post tugged at the heartstrings of thousands. At the time of writing, it has been shared more than 6,000 times and received more than 200,000 likes. But it especially hit home for parents in similar situations, prompting them to share photos and stories of their children.
"My love. My heart. My reason," one mom wrote with a photo of her daughter. "She is also nonverbal, in a wheelchair. Those eyes tell all! Special needs parents know the true meaning if unconditional love. No hugs, no words, no actions... Just eyes."
Many of the commenters said that this woman's story, and the stories of the parents and families who responded with their own photos, "hit them right in the feels." And we're right there with them.