It looked like an ordinary holiday photo of Lily (3).
During a boat trip, Lily was allowed to take over the steering motor.... It was the perfect moment for an awesome photo.
Lily's proud parents put the photo on social media. But after just 1 day, the photo already had over 10.000 likes from all over the world.
The confused parents read the comments underneath the picture and then looked at it a second time...
And then they saw the reason why their daughter went viral
Dad Takes A Holiday Snapshot Of His Daughter - Only Then Did They See What Was In The Background...
Alex am 18. August 2021
It was summer when Katy and Bob went to the coast of France with their daughter, Lily.
The weather was really hot in France and because they were staying near the coast, they rented a boat to go sailing.
Lily really enjoyed these kinds of boat trips, especially when the boat was going very fast. Katy and Bob also enjoyed their time on the boat. They both used to sail a lot when they were younger.
But none of them ever expected that this boat trip would be so very special...?
The weather was really hot in France and because they were staying near the coast, they rented a boat to go sailing.
Lily really enjoyed these kinds of boat trips, especially when the boat was going very fast. Katy and Bob also enjoyed their time on the boat. They both used to sail a lot when they were younger.
But none of them ever expected that this boat trip would be so very special...?
Katy and Bob met at a high school sailing camp. They share a great love of sailing and try to go on a holiday by the coast, in a different country, each year.
However, since Lily was born, Katy and Bob couldn't go sailing as much. They were way too busy taking care of Lily. She needed more care than most other children...
Katy's pregnancy started off without a hitch. But when she was 32 weeks pregnant, she suddenly got terrible stomach cramps. Worried, she made an appointment with her doctor.
But what the doctor told them, they could hardly believe...
However, since Lily was born, Katy and Bob couldn't go sailing as much. They were way too busy taking care of Lily. She needed more care than most other children...
Katy's pregnancy started off without a hitch. But when she was 32 weeks pregnant, she suddenly got terrible stomach cramps. Worried, she made an appointment with her doctor.
But what the doctor told them, they could hardly believe...
When they arrived at the doctors and Katy had done some tests, it was clear to the doctor. Katy was in labor. She had to go to hospital immediately!
When they arrived at the hospital, she was already 6 centimeters dilated. Within 10 minutes, she was already at the required 10 centimeters to start pushing.
However, doctors were worried about the baby's heartbeat and because the baby was in breech position, it was decided that they would perform an emergency Cesarean section. Before she knew it, Katy was in surgery. "I don't remember much of it. Everything happened so quickly."
When they arrived at the hospital, she was already 6 centimeters dilated. Within 10 minutes, she was already at the required 10 centimeters to start pushing.
However, doctors were worried about the baby's heartbeat and because the baby was in breech position, it was decided that they would perform an emergency Cesarean section. Before she knew it, Katy was in surgery. "I don't remember much of it. Everything happened so quickly."
Once the baby was delivered, the nurses quickly took her away. "I had no idea what was happening. I had to hear from my husband that our daughter was in an incubator. That was very intense." Of course, I wanted to see her right away! I could hardly believe she was real. I found it very difficult not being able to hold her. I missed a bit of bonding in a way."
Lily had to stay in hospital for six weeks. She had some difficulty breathing and some organs weren't fully developed yet. Fortunately, Lily was healthy, but because of her early birth, she needed extra attention. Later it turned out that not everything was going well...
Lily had to stay in hospital for six weeks. She had some difficulty breathing and some organs weren't fully developed yet. Fortunately, Lily was healthy, but because of her early birth, she needed extra attention. Later it turned out that not everything was going well...
Lily's development wasn't like most other children. It took longer for her to learn to speak and to start walking. Although Katy and Bob really loved taking care of Lily, it exhausted them and their relationship suffered, too. There was even a moment when they discussed taking a break from their relationship.
But together they were strong enough to overcome the struggles. Their shared love for their daughter, Lily, also made sure of that. They even decided to start traveling and sailing again. At the time, they didn't realize that their daughter would soon go viral...
But together they were strong enough to overcome the struggles. Their shared love for their daughter, Lily, also made sure of that. They even decided to start traveling and sailing again. At the time, they didn't realize that their daughter would soon go viral...
Three years after Lily was born, she was completely healthy and could do everything her peers could. So when they were on holiday, Katy and Bob were happy to let Lily sail the boat for a short time. Once on the boat, Lily wanted to hold the steering motor. Her mother put her next to the motor and thought it was the perfect time to take a picture.
Proud of her strong daughter, Katy posted the photo on Facebook. What she never expected was that, within 1 day, the picture would be shared over 10,000 times. When she read the comments, it turned out that there was something very special to see in the background...
Proud of her strong daughter, Katy posted the photo on Facebook. What she never expected was that, within 1 day, the picture would be shared over 10,000 times. When she read the comments, it turned out that there was something very special to see in the background...
Jirapong Manustrong / Shutterstock.com
When Katy woke up and looked at the notifications on her cell phone, she was shocked. "I thought something had happened because I was getting so many messages," Katy said. When she read the messages, it became clear that there was something in the background. And not just anything... Katy quickly grabbed her cell phone to look at all the photos they had taken. On her cellphone she could zoom in on the background of the picture.
And it was true... In the background she saw a shadow. She didn't know exactly what she was looking at and decided to read the comments underneath the picture again... As she read the comments, she realized what this strange shadow in the background of the photo was...
And it was true... In the background she saw a shadow. She didn't know exactly what she was looking at and decided to read the comments underneath the picture again... As she read the comments, she realized what this strange shadow in the background of the photo was...
It was a very rare sight to see - a whale near the French coast. But when Katy took a closer look at the picture, she indeed saw the tail of a whale. Katy thought it was strange that a whale's tail could go so viral... But then she noticed a comment from someone who was a biologist...
Finding a whale at this location is not normal... There may well be something wrong with this whale. And then she read something that broke her heart...
Finding a whale at this location is not normal... There may well be something wrong with this whale. And then she read something that broke her heart...
If a whale swims so close to the shore, it means it's lost. Whales normally swim deep at sea, certainly in the French region. Whales are shy animals and will not get close to sailing or swimming tourists. So there had to be a reason for why this whale was so close to the boat.
Katy told her husband, Bob, what she had just read and he immediately called the coastguard of the French town. They were very surprised by the news that Bob had told them and immediately took action. This was a matter of life and death...
Katy told her husband, Bob, what she had just read and he immediately called the coastguard of the French town. They were very surprised by the news that Bob had told them and immediately took action. This was a matter of life and death...
The coastguard called the police and, together, they took action immediately. Everyone on the water and in the sea was summoned to return to the beach. When everyone got out of the water, the coastguard quickly sailed to the whale's location and tried to lure the mammal to the open sea.
The whale, however, just stayed where it was... Hours passed, but the whale still stayed in the same place. At this point, it was decided that the Navy would be called. They could dive to see what was wrong and why the whale was staying in one place... When the Navy arrived and got into the water, they discovered something shocking...
The whale, however, just stayed where it was... Hours passed, but the whale still stayed in the same place. At this point, it was decided that the Navy would be called. They could dive to see what was wrong and why the whale was staying in one place... When the Navy arrived and got into the water, they discovered something shocking...
Once underwater, the Navy marines could see a very large layer of plastic waste. So much so that the whale was completely stuck in a large plastic object that was wrapped around it like a big net. Even with all that power, the big whale couldn't free itself from the mess that was holding it prisoner.
The marines didn't hesitate for a second and swam to the plastic waste. They were focused on freeing the whale, but then the whale did something unexpected...
The marines didn't hesitate for a second and swam to the plastic waste. They were focused on freeing the whale, but then the whale did something unexpected...
When the marines came closer to free the whale, they thought the whale would struggle. But nothing could be further from the truth. The whale remained very still. It was as if he could somehow sense that they were trying to help him. The whale remained still and let the marines do their work.
It took longer than an hour before the whale was completely freed and could swim back into the open sea. One last greeting from his huge tail came out of the water.. And then the whale was gone... Everyone in the coastal town knew what had happened that day and wanted to help somehow...
It took longer than an hour before the whale was completely freed and could swim back into the open sea. One last greeting from his huge tail came out of the water.. And then the whale was gone... Everyone in the coastal town knew what had happened that day and wanted to help somehow...
The inhabitants of the coastal town felt responsible for the whale getting caught in the plastic waste. They realised that were polluting the sea way too much. That is why they decided to carry out a major clean-up operation. The whole village moved out to the beach to clean up both the beach and the sea.
"Everyone is responsible for maintaining a waste-free nature." Together, they stood strong and cleaned up the beach in no time. After that, there would never be another case of sea creatures being trapped. And Lily and her parents? They're just glad they were able to help free the whale...
"Everyone is responsible for maintaining a waste-free nature." Together, they stood strong and cleaned up the beach in no time. After that, there would never be another case of sea creatures being trapped. And Lily and her parents? They're just glad they were able to help free the whale...
