It'sHarley - June 25-June 29, 2006
--"Cortni"
Harley was born June 25, 2006 and sadly laid to rest on June 29. Though he lived only five days, his spirit and his resolve inspired many people from all over the world. This page is dedicated to all those who were touched by Harley, and who returned the favor by supporting the Nelson family in their time of need.
Harley was "dysmature," which means that even though he went full term, or nearly so, his body wasn't fully developed. It was as though he "baked" for the right amount of time, but at the wrong temperature.
When he was born, his eyes weren't even open. His skin was translucent, and had that "premie" sheen to it.
We anxiously waited for your born
Nights became sleepless and we all felt worn
The family that surrounds you is the best of the best
By having them with you, you had already been blessed
From the first moment
we laid eyes on you
Our eyes were stuck to the camera like gum on a shoe
You came out with spots
just like your mom
She surprised us with how
she has stayed so calm
But even with all those spots
You won us over color or not
Every step you have
struggled to take
Makes our hearts want to break
You have so much heart
And all of us can tell
you are quite smart
Hang in there little man
And know that you already have
a ton of fans
We will be watching you every
step of the way
Waiting for updates and
continuing to pray
--"Skye"
At first, Harley's mom, Missy, had no milk, and we were worried about infection due to the lack of colostrum.
Soon the milk did come, but Harley was unable to stand to nurse. Missy had to be milked so that Harley could be bottle-fed.
Eventually, against odds that no one could have imagined at the time, Harley was able to stand and nurse on his own.
Oh little Harley I wish you knew,
All the people praying for you.
To see you stand and walk you try,
Brings tears of joy to my eyes.
We love you a lot and there is no doubt,
That somehow things will work out.
So feel the vibes little Harley dear,
All our strength, Love, and hope is forever near.
--"Leona"
It became evident that there was something much more "wrong" with Harley's legs than just simple dysmaturity. After many many phone calls, it was becoming clear that no one would even invest the time to see what could be done for poor Harley. All the vets were saying, "Just put him down."
Of course, they were saying that all along. They said it when there was no milk to feed Harley. They said it when he was being bottle-fed, stating that he would never get enough colostrum that way.
But it was sheer determination, laced with a bit of stubbornness, that got Harley and the Nelsons as far as they had come to this point. So after days of phone calls and over 5800 minutes racked up on Janet's cell phone, they finally got the University of Wisconsin at Madison to agree to take a look at Harley.
Janet tells of the ride:
"The trailer ride was the longest ride of my life, as Missy was colicking the whole way and going down in the trailer. The banamine we had given her was not working and she was getting worse and worse. We had to stop along the way to find vets to help her.
"I know Janelle must have been going out of her mind as I had her on the phone giving her updates. It was so dang loud in that trailer, yet she could hear me scream, 'MISSY GET UP! COME ON MISSY GET UP! YOU CAN DO THIS GIRL!' Then in the next breath, 'HARLEY, STAY DOWN!'
"At one point Missy had gone down and was under the divider. I tried everything I could do to get her up, and finally she did. I just want to thank Janelle for hanging in there with me and telling me, 'You can do this Janet! You're almost there!' and Yahoo road mapping for me when I would see signs along the way.
"There was a lot of road construction and we got lost so we pulled over by a park. A man walked past the trailer, then came back and said, 'You got ponies in there?'
"He came to take a closer look and I said, 'Nope, we got a big horse and her baby.'
"He looked at me and said, 'Who are they?'
"I said, 'Well, this is Missy and the li'l fella is Harley. We are on our way to...'
"He cut me off an said, 'This is the famous Harley?!'
"I was so excited! He said, 'I know exactly where you're going! I'll tell you just how to get there!'
"I said, 'Sir, could you please walk up to the truck an give my hubby the directions?'
"He ran right up there and when he came back he said, 'You'll be there in no time! God's speed to you, and they will take good care of Harley!'
"As we drove away I can't even tell you how I felt. I just looked down at Harley and said, 'Ya hear that Harley? You're famous!'"
"He sure was a trooper! And when we got to the U, well, all I can say is WOW! They were awesome! Here are just some of the one's working on him.
"It took a whole crew to hold him on that table. Even then the li'l guy kicked the poor vet right in the you-know-where and almost brought him to his knees!
"Missy, too, was getting the VIP treatment. There were as many working on her as there were on Harley. I've just never seen anything like it!
"They told us it would be a bit so we went to grab a bite to eat. When we got back the news was horrifying. They showed us the x-rays and that is when I lost it big time. Harley was missing so much bone that he should not have been able to stand at all. They showed the bone fragments that had broken away every time he would stand up and walk. The bone would grind together and the pain would be unbearable. They had no clue how he did it.
"They called in a surgeon and he explained that if it was just that Harley was a premie with crooked
legs they would have been able to fix him right up. But this was as severe as they had ever seen and
Harley would never have a good quality of life.
"I just couldn't let our Harley live in pain and knew it was time to let him go. As they let us go in to say goodbye to him I lay with him and told him that he was loved by so many all around the world and that we never wanted him to hurt or be in pain and soon he would be able to run and be pain free.
"I bet he is now runnin' like crazy up there and showing off sayin' 'Look at me!' I just can't thank you all enough! I love you all! Thank you again and again! We are family for sure and I know Harley felt the love you all showed as well!"
Every living being that is put here
Is put here for a reason and this is clear
Every living being is given the chance
To enjoy life and to dance
Every living being is given a pair of eyes
To see the world around them and look up to the skies
And every living being is given a soul
That makes them who they are, makes them whole
Every living being is given the chance to make a mark
To live life to the fullest and light a spark
Given legs to stand on, and to walk in the grass
And obstacles that sometimes are tough to surpass
Some are given these challenges early in time
And although things are tough, it will turn out fine
It may take some spirit and a whole lot of heart
But this makes you stronger from the start
Every living being has a weakness
And often times periods of bleakness
Times get hard
Sometimes they leave us scarred
But when we pull through
It shows us that to ourselves and to others we are true
Every living being is given only a couple true friends
And you have been blessed with many that will be with you til the end
You have such a will
And watching your love for life is such a thrill
If only every living being had such a drive
To love every second of life and against the odds to thrive
Every living being is given the power to love
You have opened people's hearts and brought us a gift from above
Not all living beings make such an impact
To make those around them tear up, and cause many smiles to have cracked
You have the power to bring strangers together
And make other stresses in life feel as light as a feather
For when we watch you stand on your own four feet
It reminds us how precious life is and our hearts to skip a beat
Not all living beings make people look around
And take a second to tell those they love how they feel
and to listen to each and every sound
You have been given a gift
To touch people's hearts and give our spirits a lift
Not all living beings are given the ability to speak
But the mute ones go about it with a different technique
One that touches those around them deep inside
And given us a chance to go with them on the ride
For some its hard to realize
For this is a gift that people write about in books and idealize
Harley you are a living being that has touched us all
From the confinement of a stall
You truly are a gift from above
None of us can help falling in love
For you we all say a prayer
For a living being such as yourself is so very rare
--"Skye"
Also, here is a link to Skye's wonderful MySpace page for Harley.
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