Cousin Jake

I wanted to share a poem written by Jake, Gus' oldest cousin. Jake is in 8th grade, and he has shown us his maturity, compassion and love for his cousin by organizing a fundraiser last year at his school that netted $600 (for that, he made it onto our Heros page here).

Recently, Jake approached me with a poem/rap that he wrote in honor of Gus. We hope to get him into a recording studio to record it soon. Gus has a special connection with Jake as well, and this poem shows why:


Hey, hey hey my cousin,
One day I heard,
You have a bit of a problem,
Like something with your muscles isn't working quite right,
But let me the first to say,
There's nothing wrong with you in plain sight,
And I know you're strong,
And I know you're brave,
And nothing in this world,
Can make your smile go away,
Because you're as powerful,
As the sun is bright,
And you won't go down,
Without putting up a tough fight,
We give you hope,
And give you support,
And you have a spot,
In all of our hearts,
We love you as much,
As the sky is blue,
And even on a cloudy day,
We can see the perfection in you.

Most kids wear braces,
On their teeth,
But you wear braces,
On your legs, ankles and feet,
And you take medicine,
To help you along,
But that's not what really,
Make's you strong,
No, it can never compare,
To the care that we give,
And can never measure up,
To your will to live!

The thoughts that run,
Through your mind all day,
Must only be,
Live laugh love and play,
And when I see,
Your face light up,
It shows that you too,
Know we have Hope For Gus,
Yes, we have hope,
Hope for you,
For every amazing thing,
You have done and will do,
Yes our hope is more powerful,
Than any disease,
And what I'm saying here,
Isn't just coming from me,
It's coming from everyone who's been affected,
By DMD,
And we all have Hope For Gus, little buddy!!