Twins Mason and Hawk Buchmeyer were born late August, 2016. Their doctors immediately noticed that Hawk was suffering from a rare lung condition.
Hawk had been born with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), a condition that leaves a hole in the diaphragm, which allows the organs to creep into the chest. While there are treatment methods for this disease, long-term problems and fatalities are also possible.
For Hawk, his CDH caused him significant trouble since birth. He struggled to breathe and his doctors had to constantly monitor his condition with medication.
At only a few days old, he’d already underwent several surgeries to reduce the swelling in his abdomen and repair organs that hadn’t developed properly during pregnancy.
His condition varied from each day to the next; some days he would be stable, but on others, doctors weren’t sure he would make it through the day.
When Hawk and his twin were 11 days old, the day had been particularly rough, so upon the nurses’ suggestion, their parents decided to lay Mason in the same bed as Hawk as the two slept.
Once Mason was set down, he immediately reached out for Hawk, grabbed his arm, and held him in a touching embrace. A wide smile spread across his face as he did so.
“It’s the first time they have ever touched,” their parents wrote alongside the photo on Facebook, “and as soon as Mason felt Hawk he reached out for his arm and smiled this big.”
Unfortunately, only a few days after the photo was taken, Hawk passed away.
Parents Brandy Guettler and Tommy Buchmeyer shared the news on their public Facebook page, thanking everyone for their love and support. Their son was no longer suffering, and they were going to try “to take it day by day. It’s never going to be easy…but at least we have Mason to hold onto.”
