Can You Believe This Is Our Life?
August 06, 2025 by Katie Travis |Leave a Comment
Written by Daddy…
It’s early morning again, and I’m sitting in the family lounge — coffee in hand, heavy thoughts resting on my chest.
A few hours of sleep.
A swirl of emotions.
And I’m trying to put into words what my heart can barely hold.
I’ve been writing Katie an anniversary letter, reflecting on everything we’ve shared. Somehow, my mind drifted back to something she says from time to time — a phrase that used to mean something completely different than it does now.
"Can you believe this is our life?"
Katie used to say it when we paused to take in our home.
The house we bought in the summer of 2021.
Our dream home.
The one we fell in love with the moment we pulled into the driveway — before the “For Sale” sign even went up.
We just knew.
It felt like a place meant for us.
A place to grow into.
A place to raise Emi.
A place to dream and rest and fill with laughter.
Emi had just turned one.
We were building a life.
We’d sit in the living room or out back, watching her play, and Katie would look around, smile, and softly say it again:
"Can you believe this is our life?"
It was always filled with joy, gratitude, and love.
And now…
That same sentence still lives in my heart — but it sounds so different.
I still hear her voice, only now it echoes through hospital walls.
Through IV beeps and tearful nights.
Through whispered prayers and aching hearts.
The weight of it is heavier.
The meaning has changed.
"Can you believe this is our life?"
A dream home… now three hours away.
A radiant little girl… hooked up to lines and monitors instead of skipping through the kitchen.
Plans on hold.
Peace interrupted.
Hope stretched thin.
I never imagined we’d be here.
But here we are.
And yet, even here, that same wonder still shows up in unexpected places.
In the way Katie kisses Emi’s forehead.
In how she stays strong when everything inside her is breaking.
In how we hold each other’s gaze and still find strength in it.
Even now — especially now — I sit here and think:
"Can you believe this is our life?"
Not out of bitterness or disbelief…
But in awe of how we keep going.
How we’re still standing.
Still loving.
Still showing up every single day.
That phrase now holds the entire spectrum of life:
Joy and heartbreak.
Gratitude and grief.
Beauty and brutality.
All wrapped into one fragile, resilient existence.
A life we never saw coming.
A life we never would have chosen.
But a life we are still fiercely living together.
So to you, Katie, on our anniversary — I hear your voice echoing still:
"Can you believe this is our life?"
And I say:
Yes, baby. I can.
Because you’re still in it with me.
Because Emi still fights.
Because love still holds.
And one day soon — when Emi is home again, skipping through the kitchen of that dream house, giggling and growing like she was meant to — we’ll say it again.
Only this time, with tears of joy in our eyes:
"Can you believe this is our life?"
And we’ll mean it all over again.
— Mark 💙
How You Can Help
Many of you have asked how you can help — and we are so grateful.
The truth is, this 2½-year journey with Emi’s Leukemia treatment is long and heavy. Between travel, time away from work, medical costs, and the daily effort to be fully present for her, we’ve had to accept help in ways we never imagined.
If you feel led and are in a position to give, we’ve set up a donation page to help ease some of the financial burden so we can focus fully on Emi’s healing.
🙏 Your support — whether through prayers, donations, or sharing her story — means more than we can ever put into words.
With love and deep gratitude,
Mark, Katie, and Emi
