Email

Print

Courtney Menzies has this story.

This energetic, fun-loving 7-year-old girl is Brinae Myvette - the dancer who lost her leg after she got a nasty cut that led to an amputation.

But though the recovery process hasn't been easy, that hasn't stopped little Brinae from doing what she does best. According to her mother, there are still times when she becomes overwhelmed, but when the music hits, there is no stopping her.

Delva Joseph, Brinae's Mother
"Since December, I was just trying to put back the pieces together, trying to make life for her as normal as possible, as we can, she's going back to school. She still does most of the things she used to do, the only challenges is when we- like last night before she went out there, she was crying, and so it's just times like those when we have to encounter something new, it's always, we go through that dark place and we just have a talk with her and she gets right up back like it's nothing so… I must say her spirit, it makes it a bit easier for me sometimes, because you know she's still a child, she's still processing what is happening, she doesn't really understand so just have to let her know it's not the end of the world, she just has to accept it and that will be her life."

"From she was a little girl, she loves dancing, so if we're anywhere, the king and queen, wherever music is, you can definitely know she'll be up, you cannot hold her, she'll be jumping around running around, doing flips, all kinds of things, you can't- sometimes my heart is scared but I just gotta leave her there to just do her thing."

And Brinae has had less than a year to adjust to her new life, since her leg was amputated back in December.

But even in that short span of time, like any kid, she hasn't stopped jumping around, climbing, and having fun. Her mother explained that her dance training sped the process along.

Delva Joseph, Brinae's Mother
"Before the accident, she used to do ballet, so balancing is not really hard for her, it comes naturally. From the first day she came out of the hospital, she just goes, she's already used to balancing, she has the wheelchair but she doesn't really use it, it's just the crutches she uses most of the time."

"I would say it's the, I wouldn't say me, but I would say just the community, the people are her, Miss Pauline, the band, she was out there, she was crying, and everybody was, "Brinae!" And so it's the people and the motivation and the sense of joy that everyone around her gives her to let her know you are still beautiful, you can do whatever you want to do so it's just the support from everybody."

And at only 7 years old, Brinae has become a source of hope and inspiration to people in similar situation all across the world.

Delva Joseph, Brinae's Mother
"Truly, like every single day, we get so many people from all around, people from the US, people from all around the world whether it's on TikTok, on Facebook, we get a lot of love, a lot of messages saying that she's an inspiration to people small and people older like we had some people, they had a leg amputated and they're home, just depressed, and then they'll say look at this little girl, she's only 6/7 years old and look at her spirit. And then that gives them a sense of motivation so I do understand that she's so small but she is a motivation to a lot of people."

"I always say that is the sense of hope that keeps us going, I always remind her you have to be, whichever it is, if you came back out with both of your legs gone, or even if you came back with one of your legs, you still have to be thankful for life because there are other people out there that wish they had the opportunity you did. You went in a situation at 50/50 chance of life, the doctors didn't even think that she would have woken up back from the severity of the situation at hand, and you came back out and look at you, you came back out so strong."

But Brinae's journey isn't over yet - soon she'll be back on two legs:

Delva Joseph, Brinae's Mother
"Currently she was accepted by the Shriner's Hospital in the United States so currently we're just waiting for the paperwork or the filing to be completed with the VISA and the travel dates and when she goes and comes back, she'll be on her two feet. So if she's this strong with one foot imagine her with two feet, I'll probably be running all around the place."

And so while you've heard the old saying about turning life's lemons into lemonade, Brinnae has taken it to another level, she's turned a disability into a dance.

And, she continues to inspire: later on in the news - we'll take you to the Mas Camps - where you'll hear how Brinae is the Queen for Soca Massive Junior Band.