Even before he was born, Darcy’s parents knew he was going to be an exceptional child. His mom had a premonition from the very beginning of the pregnancy, so when the ultrasound technician checked, and re-checked and checked again some of the measurements of the fetus, she knew something was different about this baby. More testing was requested and soon his parents were told that their son had Down’s Syndrome. In some ways, his parents were prepared for this news. And yet, having their premonitions confirmed, it still took some getting used to.

Darcy was born just like any child. He was loved by his parents and his two brothers. He grew and developed, maybe not like most, but he was developing his own personality and character.

If I were to pick one word to describe Darcy, it would be ENERGY!  He is a very active boy.

In elementary school he loved playing four-square with the other kids. He didn’t know the rules, but the other kids were kind and just let him hit the ball however he wanted. After a while, some of his classmates started getting impatient with him, and didn’t want to let him play. But others decided that they would teach Darcy how to play properly. He learned, and the others soon accepted him playing with them.

His teachers knew that learning math would not be easy for Darcy. Imagine having to comprehend the intricacies of numbers. Then include addition, subtraction, Multiplication, and, heaven forbid, division. While doing multiplication tables in class, they would go around the room and each student would say the next number in the sequence. For example, if they were doing multiples of seven, they would say, seven, fourteen, twenty-one, twenty-eight… then Darcy’s turn… he would get to say the next number that he knew, “twenty-nine”… and the following student would resume the multiplication table with thirty-five. While multiplication was beyond the understanding of Darcy, he knew how to count, and knew that 29 came after 28. He was included in the classroom activities!

Darcy loves all sorts of physical activity. He is a dare devil of sorts, having the courage to swing on a giant rope swing that other children might have had second thoughts about. He plays basketball with Special Olympics, he loves playing 10 pin bowling, and he loves to perform and dance for others. He has danced at half time in basketball games, and at concerts.  In fact, when he attends concerts and the music starts, he will start to dance in front of his seat. And then invite everyone around him to get out of their seats and dance. How can you listen to music, and not dance? How can you be invited by Darcy to dance, and not stand up and dance?

Darcy is a blessing to his family. They love the spirit and the energy he brings. This painting shows Darcy dancing, wearing his favorite color yellow shirt, with his basketball, four square ball, and bowling ball with three of the ten pins.

The artist included in the background paint some ashes from the remains of his art studio that burned in one of California’s destructive wild fires of 2018. These ashes do some amazing things to the colors of the paint, and represent how so much good can come from events that you might think are tragedies. Darcy is no tragedy. He is a miracle and has brought joy and happiness to his parents and his family.